MOTORISTS who stop for petrol and a coffee as they travel in and out of Dorset might be visiting some of the country's worst service stations, according to customers.

Rownhams Services southbound and northbound on the M27 are the third and fourth worst in England, according to a Transport Focus survey.

More than 110 services were considered as part of the poll.

Winchester Services southbound on the M3 was seventh worst.

Heston Services eastbound, near Heathrow Airport, was worst of all, scoring a customer satisfaction rating of just 62 per cent in the watchdog’s survey. By comparison, Rownhams south scored 75 per cent.

Reading Services westbound came top with a score of 100 per cent.

Both Rownhams services are operated by Roadchef, while Winchester south is run by Moto.

Representatives from Roadchef and Moto have not yet returned calls for comments.

Transport Focus surveyed 8,700 customers between February and April on topics including toilets, staffing and food.

AA president Edmund King said: “We need to attract drivers to stop as some ten per cent of fatalities on motorways are due to driver fatigue.”

Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith said: “Our message is clear: use the results to deliver even higher levels of customer satisfaction in future.”