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Diesel prices near record high as RAC warns 55-litre fill-up could cost £109
The average price of diesel is nearing the UK’s all-time record, with motorists paying 198.32p a litre, according to the RAC.
Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the price of a 55-litre diesel fill-up for a family car had reached approximately £109.
“The average price of diesel is teetering on the brink of a new all-time high at 198.32p, taking the cost of a 55-litre fill-up for a family car to £109,” Williams said.
The current diesel record stands at 199.09p a litre. Williams said it would “almost certainly be surpassed over the weekend” as retailers continued to pass on higher wholesale supply costs.
Petrol is now averaging 173.60p a litre, its highest price in more than four years. The RAC said petrol had risen by nearly 12p during September and by more than 40p since 28 February.
Diesel has increased by 14.5p a litre during September and is up 55p since 28 February. The latest figures show diesel has risen by 39.3% since the end of February, compared with a 30.7% increase for petrol.
Williams said the pressure on pump prices was being driven by the cost of oil, which had reached $106 a barrel after remaining around the $100 mark for the previous two weeks.
“Sadly for drivers, there appears to be no end in sight to high prices at the pumps as the cost of a barrel of oil hit $106 having been around that $100 mark for the last two weeks,” he said.
“A significant drop in the price of oil is badly needed but this seems unlikely without the US and Iran striking a deal.”
The latest increase will add to operating costs for taxi drivers, private hire drivers and other high-mileage vehicle operators, with diesel users facing the sharpest rise in both absolute and percentage terms.
