Fuel Prices

I know fuel prices are a major issue to all us motorists, be it work or pleasure we have to pay to move about. It realy gets my back up when two garages on oposite sides of the road charge different prices as much as fifty pence more. As for motorway sevice areas I would rather not fill up there if I can help it , they drag enough out of you for plastic food and drinks. If our goverment would make fuel a fixed price and let the garages make profit on other sales they would have my vote every time. I wouldnt even set the dog on there party members that knock on the door, I might actualy go and vote.

Hi

George is going to sort us out to tomorrow it will be Black Wednesday again.

What amazes me is that I see cars/vans filling up in garages literally yds from supermarkets costing 5-10 p cheaper fuel.

shelldrake wrote:What amazes me is that I see cars/vans filling up in garages literally yds from supermarkets costing 5-10 p cheaper fuel.

Mars Bar reps with fuel cards............

dandywarhol wrote:

shelldrake wrote:What amazes me is that I see cars/vans filling up in garages literally yds from supermarkets costing 5-10 p cheaper fuel.

Mars Bar reps with fuel cards............

Agree, I had one once, only garage near me that took the card charged the public 15p per litre more than Tesco across the road but relied on vans/wagons with their fuel cards who were charged on a monthly/weekly account and paid more or less the same price as Tesco. We got notified each week what the price would be at any garage that took the card.

Having searched around for cheaper fuel and then realised that all the looking and time spent was only going to save me a couple of quid on a fill up, I just look for somewhere reasonably priced but convenient nowadays. Took the view that life is too short, basically, though will always pop into a supermarket fuel station on the way past if I need a fill up and pay a bit less

What makes me chuckle is when the budget says that fuel is going up at midnight, you get queues "miles" long outside filling stations.
By the time they get served, they will have wasted more money sitting in the queue than they will save on a full tank.

Frank

DuxDeluxe wrote:Having searched around for cheaper fuel and then realised that all the looking and time spent was only going to save me a couple of quid on a fill up, I just look for somewhere reasonably priced but convenient nowadays. Took the view that life is too short, basically, though will always pop into a supermarket fuel station on the way past if I need a fill up and pay a bit less

I signed up to http://www.petrolprices.com/the-price-of-fuel.html a few years ago - they send me a weekly email of there's cheapest within my postal area

Thanks - saves too much looking!

I've just received my weekly price list of local garages but the trouble with it is it's already out of date. One garage on the list dropped their price 5 days ago but it still shows the old price. It was a useful website when prices didn't alter for a few weeks but now prices change every couple of days, it's not so useful.

It gives an idea though, Paul. As above, I don't get hung up about a few pence per litre. Usually put Shell VPower in or similar as it does make a difference to the way it drives (personal opinion only - no off topic discussions on fuels and fuel quality please. Separate thread if anyone is interested) and I fill up if it looks reasonable and as and when needed. Same with the Gaslow - usually BP station locally for this as Shell take a very safety oriented line on refilling LPG in vans

Agreed, the indication is usually fairly accurate week in, week out with the same stations around me

I usualy fill up at my local Supermarket or BP. I either get Nectar points or if I buy enough food you sometimes get a fuel voucher. Its usualy the right time of the week for more fuel any way. My Duetto seems to run ok on supermarket fuel, Transits are not going to be much different on fancy fuels are they

is it real competition between fuel companies or as i suspect a cartel?
regards
Mike

Most of the fuel companies don't really want to be in the retail business and have franchised out the retail bit. The reason for this is that historically they have lost money on this and shops are not their core business. Getting the stuff out of the ground gives a far better shareholder return and after that it is all marginal or loss making. This is why a lot of refineries have either shut or been sold (if you are less than 300 000 Barrels per day throughput then you are almost too small to be viable) and most other bits have been devolved.

I don't think we have a cartel but they watch each other like a hawk and price reductions are reluctantly followed but of course the increased price bandwagon is readily jumped upon. The pump price of fuel in UK only very roughly follows the crude price so a crude price drop will not really lead to a pump price drop. The biggest influence on price movement is probably the actual (not futures) traded feedstock price on the Rotterdam market which gives a benchmark for the naphtha, reformate and other distillate prices that the suppliers have to pay to have enough product to blend and deliver to your local Sainstescmorissasda supermarket or indeed the local Shell/BP etc station.

Hope that helps a bit - it is quite a complex subject

DuxDeluxe wrote:Most of the fuel companies don't really want to be in the retail business and have franchised out the retail bit. The reason for this is that historically they have lost money on this and shops are not their core business. Getting the stuff out of the ground gives a far better shareholder return and after that it is all marginal or loss making. This is why a lot of refineries have either shut or been sold (if you are less than 300 000 Barrels per day throughput then you are almost too small to be viable) and most other bits have been devolved.

I don't think we have a cartel but they watch each other like a hawk and price reductions are reluctantly followed but of course the increased price bandwagon is readily jumped upon. The pump price of fuel in UK only very roughly follows the crude price so a crude price drop will not really lead to a pump price drop. The biggest influence on price movement is probably the actual (not futures) traded feedstock price on the Rotterdam market which gives a benchmark for the naphtha, reformate and other distillate prices that the suppliers have to pay to have enough product to blend and deliver to your local Sainstescmorissasda supermarket or indeed the local Shell/BP etc station.

Hope that helps a bit - it is quite a complex subject

Phew....el

Sorry - got carried away. Oil is my job!

i thought so.
very informative.
thanks


Mike

Volume is the game. I was once told that 1p per litre difference stacks up to £1,000,000 per day to a fuel company.

Slightly off thread, but last time I was in France I noticed that motorway services, especially near the ports were about 20 cents more per litre than supermarkets less than 200 yards off the motorway. Unfortunately many of the supermarkets fuel pumps are now unmanned most of the time and sometimes do not like non French cards. Probably a scam to collect as much as possible from the gullible tourists.... Luckily I have a French Bank card so save a fortune. I can get enough in the tank to get me home and probably back to France again..

I believe that the Chancellor has was just got the Govt a big Brownie Point by not raising the price of fuel.
This was all a con as I don't think they ever meant to raise it but by not doing so we are now suppossed to say "What a good boy he is and they listened to the masses "" Yippee. Like heck They're not the Con party for nothing

I dont want to be political however under labour it was always going up. I think you will find that the Con party has cancelled all the increases that Lab planned.
regards
Mike

Good morning all. Out of interest what are fuel prices around the country just now. Sainsbury Stirling are presently at 131.9 per litre for unleaded and diesel at 137.9 .... lowest for a long time and has been for several weeks. Got an added bonus during recent shops of a 9p and a 10p off per litre, so the Bobk fleet is positively gurgling just now !!

Worth a thought for anyone travelling north - top up as prices are a lot higher further up country

1.31.9p here.
Mike

cheapest petrol 129.9 and diesel 137.9 here in Mold, North Wales. Thats at Shell and Esso, Tesco 1p dearer.

we do not have a Asda petrol in town. In Luton that was always cheapest and Shell had to price match with its closest garage.
I would expect Asda to be one of the cheapest every where.
Mike