Are Fuel Prices Dropping?
Fuel costs make up a large part of car ownership and nowadays fuel economy is something everyone is looking out for when they are buying a new car or choosing new car tyres. The latest price drops in the supermarket petrol station forecourts will be much appreciated by drivers all across the country, but will it last?
The supermarket petrol stations seem to be involved in a price war, with one supermarket cutting the cost of their fuel by 14 pence since the end of April. That is a significant drop reducing the cost of filling the average family car by around £10. Their prices are currently 127.7 pence a litre for petrol and 132.7 pence per litre for diesel. Other supermarkets are following suit by dropping their prices by 2 pence to remain competitive. The main reason for these price drops is that the wholesale fuel price has also been dropping. In fact, across the UK, the average cost of fuel is down 10.5 pence per litre since the high recorded in mid-April.
The price of oil is falling globally, and the Government’s Transport Secretary hopes that the petrol retailers will continue to pass on these savings to the consumers. The last thing anyone wants is to see a repeat of the fuel protests back in September 2000 with rolling blockades on the motorways which caused petrol pumps to run dry, as well as a lot of disruption on the roads.
As mentioned earlier, there are things that motorists can do to reduce their fuel economy, starting with choosing the right car and choosing fuel efficient car tyres, then adjusting the way they drive to reduce fuel consumption. Smooth driving, without sudden changes in speed, uses less fuel, as does dropping your speed slightly.