According to RAC research Brits are paying the highest price for diesel in Europe and “there is no good reason” as to why retailers are not slashing prices on the forecourts.
The average price of diesel is 155p which is 5- more expensive that Belgium and Ireland which are the most expensive in the continent.
RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said: “The average retailer margin on diesel – that’s the difference between the delivered wholesale price and the retail price before VAT – is 18p.
“That’s a shocking 10p more than the long-term average.
“The average price of a litre of diesel should really be down to around the 145p level if retailers were charging fairer prices.
“The margin on petrol is also, in our view, unreasonably high at 13p.
“We can see no good reason why retailers in Britain aren’t cutting their prices at the pumps.
“It’s important to note that in Northern Ireland, where there is greater competition for fuel in the absence of supermarket dominance, the average price of diesel is just 144.9p – 10p less than the UK average, and petrol is 6p cheaper at 142.4p.”
Williams added, “There is cause for hope for fairer fuel prices in the future as the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act became law on Friday, giving new powers to the Competition and Markets Authority to closely monitor road fuel prices and report any sign of malpractice to the Government.”