Drivers paying 10p more than they should for fuel, says RAC
It's claimed major retailers are increasing profit margins
Drivers are being denied a further 10p cut in petrol prices, due to major retailers hiking profit margins.
That's according to new analysis from the RAC.
It says the average price of a litre of the fuel in the UK fell by nearly 7p to 162.9p in September, as oil prices plummeted.
This was the sixth biggest monthly drop in average petrol prices since 2000, but the motoring organisation says the cut should have been deeper.
RAC fuel spokesman, Simon Williams, said: "Drivers really should have seen a far bigger drop as the wholesale price of delivered petrol was around 120p for the whole month.
"This means forecourts across the country should have been displaying prices around 152p given the long-term margin on unleaded is 7p a litre.
"In stark contrast to this, RAC Fuel Watch data has shown margins to be around 17p a litre - a huge 10p more than normal."
Supermarkets normally charge around 3.5p per litre less than the UK average but are currently only around 1.5p cheaper.
Mr Williams noted that Morrisons is offering discounted fuel for customers who spend a certain amount of money in store.
This is a type of promotion which "tends only to be seen when supermarkets are benefitting from lower wholesale prices", he explained.
He urged drivers to "shop around for the best deals" rather than "simply assuming" supermarkets are the cheapest fuel retailers because they have been in the past.
The average price of a litre of diesel fell by 3.5p to 180.2p last month.
The cost of many things has been going up:
Interest rates and inflation go up
Inflation rose by 8.8% in the 12 months to January 2023, down from 9.2% in December 2022. With interest rates also rising to 4%, those saving money will earn more interest on their finances, whilst those paying mortgages would pay more interest to the bank.
Energy bills
The price of energy went up incredibly as the cost of living crisis hit, with the gas price spike caused largely by the war in Ukraine. The price cap - which is set by an independent regulator to help offset costs onto customers - was set to rise to £3,549 for an average home in October but a price freeze from the government restricted the typical bill to £2,500. That's still an increase of 27% from the previous energy cap and as it's a cap on unit cost, the more energy you use the higher your bill will be.
Food prices
The cost of a weekly shop also has gone up as a result of the cost of living crisis. As a result of the war in Ukraine, a number of products including cooking oils and wheat have been disrupted. This means that several products are now considerably more expensive, driving bills up for customers.
Prices at the pumps
The average cost of petrol has also rose to unprecedented levels. Supply lines for petrol have been thrown into doubt as a result of the war in Ukraine, as Russia is a large export partner for gas, oil and fuel. In April 2022, the average price for a litre of petrol on the forecourt was 160.2p, whilst a litre of diesel would cost 170.5p. By late June 2022 the price had risen to an average of 190.9p for a litre of unleaded and 198.9p for a litre of diesel. In March 2023 the price wass on average of 147.03 in petrol and 167.04 in diesel.
Average cost of filling up a car with petrol hits £100
On 9th June 2022, the average cost of filling up a car with petrol hit £100 for the first time ever. Diesel had already hit that milestone. It comes as the cost of fuel hit a record high of one pound eighty a litre. The 2p rise was the biggest daily jump in 17 years. Prices have dropped by at least 20p per litre since the high point.