Petrol prices spiral to record highs putting more pressure on motorists
Diesel and petrol prices climbed to record highs yesterday, putting more pressure on squeezed motorists as the cost-of-living crisis deepens.
RAC revealed petrol prices had spiked to 167.64p per litre, while diesel had soared to 180.88p per litre – rising from last weekend’s record of 179.9p.
This means a full 55-litre tank of petrol now costs £92.20 for petrol and £99.50 for diesel.
The record prices come against the backdrop of oil continuing to trade over $100 per barrel, with fears of supply shortages following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine powering booming commodity markets.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a 5p per litre cut in fuel duty in the Spring Statement two months ago, slashing the levy to 52.95p per litre.
The group’s fuel spokesman Simon Williams argued that consumers are suffering record prices partly because retailers are not passing on the fuel duty cut to their customers, despite pledging to do so.
Williams said: “While the average price of both petrol and diesel would have been far higher without the historic duty cut, it’s also unfortunately the case that drivers haven’t seen the full benefit at the pumps due to major retailers upping their margins.
Earlier this week, the motoring group revealed retailers were taking an average profit of 2p per litre more than before the policy was introduced.
While households have largely shifted to either petrol or hybrid cars, the bulk of delivery and service vehicles are still fuelled by diesel, meaning rising forecourt prices have been felt across the economy.
Rising forecourt prices have become a pressing issue in Whitehall, with Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng writing to businesses to implore them to pass on the savings from March’s fuel duty cut.
In a letter to fuel industry bodies, Kwarteng said the public were “rightly frustrated” that the fuel duty cut did not appear to have been passed through to consumers “in any visible or meaningful way,” he wrote.
Yesterday, retailers defended forecourt prices when approached for comment by City A.M.
The Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) told the newspaper that forecourt prices “do not tell the full story” and retailers’ margins were “often not enough to cover operating costs.”
It suggested pump prices to wholesale prices was not enough for a “comprehensive analysis,” which would take account of how much oil companies charge for fuel storage and delivery, card interchange costs, and development fuel costs.
The industry body’s boss Gordon Balmer called for a further reduction of fuel duty as rising oil prices had “effectively cancelled out” the discount.