BP has launched an investigation after motorists were left unable to pay for fuel at filling stations across the UK.

Customers looking to fill up were told to pay by cash, while other BP filling stations closed altogether to minimise the problem on Sunday.

BP operates filling stations in Norwich Road, Woodbridge Road and Ellenbrook Road, in Ipswich; Anson Road, in Martlesham Heath; on the southbound A12 at Capel St Mary; and in Felixstowe, Stowmarket and Bury St Edmunds.

A company statement said: “BP can confirm our sites have returned to normal service and are now once again accepting card payments.

“We would like to thank our customers for their patience and again apologise for any inconvenience caused during the brief outage.

“A full investigation has been launched to determine the cause. We will continue to monitor the situation overnight to ensure the smooth running of our operations.”

Highways England previously said all BP fuel stations in the UK were “experiencing issues accepting card payments”.

The statement said: “This is affecting all motorway service areas with BP fuel stations.”