Consumers are still losing out when it comes to paying for fuel, a regulator has said.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said supermarket retailer fuel margins are roughly double what they were in 2019, in an update to a road fuel market study it carried out last year.
It found increasing retailer fuel margins – the difference between what the retailer pays for fuel and what it sells at – cost consumers over £1.6bn in 2023 alone.
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‘Drivers feel ripped off’
The CMA report said the trend was driven by weaker competition in the sector.
RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: ‘To see drivers have paid £1.6bn more than they should have in the last year is nothing short of outrageous, especially when so many are dependent on their vehicles.
‘Drivers have every right to feel ripped off.’
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Calls for a smart price-sharing
The CMA would like to see a smart data driven fuel finder scheme set up which would let motorists know the price of fuel in real time through map apps and sat navs. It believes this could potentially save drivers up to £4.50 each time they fill up.
Legislation is needed to establish the scheme properly and enforce retailers to report their prices, but currently it is monitoring prices using information that has been voluntarily provided by fuel retailers and this only cover 40% of retail sites.
At present, consumers looking for the petrol stations with the cheapest prices can use websites such as PetrolPrices.com, and some sat nav apps such as Waze display live prices for stations nearby.
Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said: ‘Consumers have faced a particularly tough time filling up at the forecourts, so it’s encouraging to see the regulator continuing its work to clamp down on unfair pricing practices.’
Elsewhere, the CMA said competition was healthier in the groceries sector, with consumers switching to get the best deals and the lowest-price retailers were gaining market share from others.
However, it called for more consistency around unit pricing, saying this could cause confusion for shoppers.