UK diesel edging towards £2 a litre as retailers warned over unleaded rise

Fuel retailers in the UK have been warned they could be playing into the hands of competition authorities if they don’t reduce the price of unleaded in the next few days.

The RAC says it is surprised and disappointed that the price of unleaded continues to edge higher when the cost on the wholesale market is telling a different story.

Meanwhile, the average of diesel in the UK is edging closer to £2 a litre, the motorist group warned.

RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “The average price of petrol went up by a half a penny to 189.84p on Wednesday while diesel jumped almost a penny to 198p a litre making a full tank nearly £109 (£108.90).

“It seems as though we are just days away from the frightening prospect of the price of diesel averaging £2 a litre across the UK taking the cost of a full tank to a staggering £110. For drivers who still think in gallons this would be £9 a gallon.

“We’re surprised and disappointed to see the price of unleaded continuing to rise as the cost on the wholesale market tells a very different story. Over the course of last week delivered wholesale petrol averaged 148p a litre which should lead to a price of around 186p after factoring in 7p-a-litre retailer margin and VAT at 20%.

“We suspect if retailers fail to reduce their prices in the next few days they will find themselves playing into the hands of the Competition and Markets Authority which is currently looking into their behaviour.

“The average price of a litre at a motorway services is now 203.45p for petrol and 205.88p diesel while at the cheaper end of the market the average paid at one of the big four supermarkets is 187.83p for petrol and 196.21p diesel. The price of supermarket diesel has rocketed by 11p a litre in the last fortnight alone.”