January Blues, be gone. UK fuel prices are at their lowest for five years according to data published by the Government with the RAC predicting the price of a litre of unleaded could soon drop to below £1. According to Bike Social’s abacus, today’s prices compared with those from April 2012 show a saving of £6.62 per tank which is more than 25%.
The past 6 months have seen petrol prices dropping dramatically with the big four supermarkets of Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s going head-to-head and continually discounting which is of course music to motorcyclists, motorists and businesses ears. Except for those who live in more rural areas, according to the AA’s President, Edmund King, who said, “"Further drops in the pump price are extremely welcome. However, small rural towns are again being left behind by the price falls in the more competitive areas.”
While the RAC predict the price of fuel will dip below the magical £1 per litre barrier for the first time since May 2009, the AA are more wary particularly with the level of tax on fuel in the UK being the highest in Europe.
An average motorcycle fuel tank holding 18 litres of unleaded fuel would have cost £25.65 to fill in April 2012 at 142.5 pence per litre yet according to ASDA’s current forecourt price of 105.7 pence per litre, you’d see a saving of £6.62 for the identical amount of fuel.
UK average fuel prices according to the AA fuel price archive:
The fall in petrol prices has been caused as a direct result of cheap oil, which is at its lowest price since 2009 as producing nations increase their output. Crude oil prices have halved in the past six months and motorists are benefitting. However, we haven’t seen fuel prices drop as significantly mainly because 61% of the pump price for every litre of fuel sold in the UK goes to the Government as fuel duty and VAT.
The Chancellor, George Osborne, even called for British firms to pass on the benefits of the falling oil prices when he used his Twitter account this week to say “Vital this is passed on to families at petrol pumps”. The falling price of fuel is a timely boost to the Conservatives ahead of May’s General Election.
For five years, there’s not been a better excuse to take the long way home so go and ride.
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