IT looks like any other petrol station but in the mid-90s the Fourgates Service Station at Westhoughton had the reputation for being the most expensive in Bolton.

In 1996 petrol prices were being slashed with the average price at the supermarkets for four star being around £2.45 a gallon. At the service station on the A6 motorists were being charged a whopping £4.55. Petrol giants Shell and Esso were recommending that a litre of unleaded should cost motorists 56.9 p a litre. Fourgates was charging 94.9p per litre

Fourgates was part of a privately owned garage chain which had a reputation for high prices across the North West. Trading standards said they were powerless to intervene as the garages were not breaking the law although some motorists had taken matters into their own hands by driving off without paying for fuel.