Average cost of filling a tank of petrol hits £100 for the first time - RAC reaction

Commenting on new data that shows the average cost of filling a 55-litre family car has now passed the £100 mark, RAC fuel spokesperson Simon Williams said:

“It’s a truly dark day today for drivers with petrol now crossing the thoroughly depressing threshold of £100 a tank (£100.27p). A complete diesel fill-up now costs £103.43.

“With average prices so high – 182.31p for a litre of unleaded and 188.05p for diesel – there’s almost certainly going to be upward inflationary pressure which is bad news for everybody.

“While fuel prices have been setting new records on a daily basis, households up and down the country may never have expected to see the cost of filling an average-sized family car reach three figures. With RAC research showing as many as eight-in-10 depend on their cars many must be wondering if any further financial support from the Government will be forthcoming. March’s 5p fuel duty cut now looks paltry as wholesale petrol costs have already increased by five-times that amount since the Spring Statement (25p). A further duty cut or a temporary reduction in VAT would go a long way towards helping drivers, especially those on lower incomes who have no choice other than to drive.

“It’s also important to remember that the Government is still benefitting from the high fuel prices by taking around 30p in VAT from every litre sold. This compares to just 25p before Russia invaded Ukraine. On top of this the Government is still collecting 53p fuel duty from every litre.

“Other price records were also unfortunately set on Wednesday as the average of a litre of unleaded at a supermarket jumped 2.5p to 175.91p while diesel increased by nearly 2p to 184.13p. As we expected, other supermarkets raised their prices yesterday in line with the increases made by Asda.”

Find out more with RAC Fuel Watch.