Fuel prices: British drivers "exploited and ripped off"
AA report reveals how our fuel prices compare to rest of Europe.
British motorists are shelling out some of the highest fuel prices in Europe, according to the AA’s latest Fuel Price Report.
According to the AA's figures, the average price of normal unleaded petrol in the UK is 117.24 pence per litre and 119.33 pence per litre for diesel.
Of that, around two-thirds is taken as tax.
However, many other European nations are paying far less. Let’s take a look at how much drivers in other European nations are shelling out for their fuel.
|
Country |
Cost of unleaded (in UK pence per litre) |
Cost of diesel (in UK pence per litre) |
|
Czech Republic |
85.62 |
83.35 |
|
Luxembourg |
89.16 |
74.66 |
|
Austria |
92.00 |
83.40 |
|
Spain |
94.28 |
82.83 |
|
Slovakia |
98.97 |
85.61 |
|
France |
102.74 |
90.58 |
|
Ireland |
103.31 |
94.07 |
|
Germany |
105.09 |
86.96 |
|
Switzerland |
105.21 |
107.25 |
|
Belgium |
109.64 |
88.38 |
|
Sweden |
110.11 |
98.86 |
|
Portugal |
110.42 |
90.30 |
|
Greece |
117.81 |
89.16 |
|
Denmark |
119.21 |
97.05 |
|
Italy |
121.37 |
109.00 |
|
Norway |
124.77 |
107.39 |
|
Netherlands |
125.92 |
96.34 |
As you can see, a handful of counties are currently charging less than £1 a litre for petrol. But even of those charging more than £1, the majority are still charging less than the UK.
As for diesel, you'll only pay more than £1 a litre in Italy, Norway and Switzerland. Little wonder that the AA has described this as the “Great British diesel rip-off”.
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Fuel price transparency
According to the AA, we could learn a lot from our European cousins, where countries like France, Austria and Denmark offer official websites with almost real-time price information which helps drivers find the competitive retailers.
Edmund Kind, president of the AA, said that ordinary diesel drivers hitting European roads this summer will see how they are being “exploited and ripped off” by the UK fuel industry.
He added: “The same drivers will conclude that the UK government wants their tax and their votes but does little to offset the disadvantages the British driving consumer faces – apart from a duty rebate for a couple of dozen of remote rural communities and a very modest fuel price transparency trial along the southern end of the M5, involving just five petrol stations.”
What do you think? Are British drivers being ripped off? Let us know your thoughts in the comments box below.
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