A DESPERATE taxi driver was forced to drive to France to pick up a replacement car part when he was let down by manufacturers.

Graham Thorp, 42, of Chester-le-Street, County Durham, said a delay in getting a Peugeot fuel pump meant he had to make the 1,000-mile trip.

Since the breakdown nearly two weeks ago, Mr Thorp - who runs a fleet of cabs - said the delay had caused the loss of four major contracts, worth about £50,000 in total.

Last Thursday, Mr Thorp, of Lambton Street, travelled to France and returning the next day, after picking up the part.

He said British Peugeot manufacturers failed to get hold of the £350 pump, despite his £21,000 Peugeot Expert only rolling off the production line less than two years ago.

He said: "The public should know Peugeot are selling cars in this country for which the don't have important parts.

"The French could not believe it when I explained why I had come all that way. I have other contracts that will keep me afloat, but I have lost four major contracts that have cost me a lot of money."

A Peugeot spokesman said the company had located the part and it was on its way to Mr Thorp's dealer.