As petrol prices begin to ease, we have been out in Cardiff to find the cheapest prices on offer for motorists. After seeing fuel cost hit their highest levels earlier this summer, the RAC claims that the wholesale price of petrol has fallen 20p since June.
As we remain in a cost of livinhg crisis and food and energy bills continue to soar, the RAC advises drivers to shop around when it comes to filling up the tank.
Despite wholesale petrol prices falling by 20p over the last two months, the average price paid by UK drivers for unleaded has only dropped by 9p during July. According to the RAC, the latest UK average for petrol is 176.9p per litre and diesel is 187.4p per litre.
READ MORE: How to get £5 off your petrol at all UK stations with this new deal
WalesOnline went out in Cardiff on Monday, August 8, to find out what supermarkets are currently charging for fuel.
The cheapest we found was Asda at Cardiff Bay where petrol was on sale at 176.7p per litre and diesel was 183.7p per litre, while at the Sainsbury's just under five miles away in Colchester Avenue was 176.9p for petrol and 185.9 for diesel.
This was also compared to Morrisons on Newport Road where petrol was 176.7p per litre and diesel was 186.7p per litre. While Tesco in St Mellons sells petrol for 176.9p per litre and deisel for 185.9p per litre.
But, based on average wholesale prices, the RAC estimates petrol should be around 167 pence per litre which means drivers filling up at the end July - average of 182.9p per litre - were paying nearly £9 a tank more than they should be. They also claim diesel should have been 182p per litre – nearly £6 a tank lower than the end of July average.
RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “July has been an unnecessarily tough month for drivers due to the big four supermarkets’ unwillingness to cut their prices to a more a reasonable level, reflecting the consistent and significant reductions in the wholesale cost of petrol and diesel.
“As it was, we saw independent retailers leading the charge with fairer pump prices appearing all around the country which eventually forced the supermarkets to finally implement a more substantial cut late last Friday afternoon (29 July).
The spokesperson added: “The best advice for filling up is no longer to assume the supermarkets are the cheapest, but to shop around as it’s highly likely you’ll find an independent retailer which is doing the right thing and fairly reflecting their lower wholesale costs by charging a lower price. This is really encouraging because the independents buy new stock less frequently than the supermarkets as they don’t sell as much, and consequently aren’t as well positioned as their rivals to be able to snap up fuel at lower prices when there are sudden market drops.”
READ NEXT:
- Father and son set goal to run cheapest petrol station in Wales where prices are cut well below average
-
We went looking for the cheapest petrol and diesel in Swansea and there was a huge difference
-
Shell reports record profits of nearly £10bn as Brits struggle to pay energy and fuel bills
-
Martin Lewis' dire warning on energy bills that are now predicted to get even worse than we thought
-
Asda cuts fuel prices after supermarkets accused of keeping costs high
