Petrol prices fell 6p last month - but RAC says they're still too high

05 January 2024 , 00:01

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Filling up is still expensive (Image: Getty Images)

Drivers are still being taken for a ride at the pumps, even though petrol is 6p a litre cheaper, warns the RAC.

Last month a litre of unleaded dropped from 146.7p to 140.6p, falling for the second month on the trot, said the motoring group. This brought petrol prices down to a level not seen since early February 2022, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sparked a surge in the cost of oil. Diesel fell 5p in December from 154.3p to 149.2p.

But the RAC said pump prices should be still lower as the average supermarket margin on fuel was 13p per litre last month. This is more than double what it was in 2021.

The RAC also noted fuel prices in Northern Ireland at the end of December were 135.3p per litre for petrol and 144.2p for diesel. In July, watchdog the Competition and Markets Authority said pump prices are generally lower in Northern Ireland than the rest of the UK because of competition from forecourts in the Republic of Ireland.

RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “It’s clearly good news that both petrol and diesel came down substantially in December. While we’re starting the year paying much less at the pumps than we have done, it’s still galling to know that drivers aren’t being charged a fair price in comparison to Northern Ireland where the very same petrol and diesel is at least 5p a litre cheaper.”

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