00:00Fuel costs could be heading upwards again, and motorists are being warned even small
00:05rises at the pump can quickly add up. The latest figures from the RAC show petrol prices
00:10have already climbed by around 3.7 pence per litre since the weekend, while diesel has
00:17jumped by roughly 6 pence to its highest level in around 16 months. For a typical family
00:23car with a 55-litre tank, that means filling up with petrol now costs around £2 more than
00:29it did just a few days ago, and diesel drivers are paying nearly £3.30 extra for a full tank.
00:36Experts say the increases are being driven by rising global oil prices. The cost of a
00:42barrel of Brent crude oil recently climbed to around $85, a level not seen since the middle
00:48of 2024. Because fuel bought by petrol stations is linked to those global wholesale prices,
00:55any increase eventually filters through to the forecourt. Motoring groups say it usually
01:00takes about two weeks for those changes to show up at filling stations, meaning drivers could
01:05see further rises in the coming days if oil prices stay high. Despite that, analysts stress the
01:12situation is still far from the record highs seen in 2022, when petrol briefly reached more
01:18than £1.91 per litre and diesel almost £2. Even so, with household budgets already stretched,
01:26drivers are being encouraged to look for ways to make every litre of fuel go further.
01:30Under current plans, the temporary 5p cuts of fuel duty that was introduced during the pandemic
01:36will come to an end in April, and fuel duty will be uprated in line with inflation. But I know
01:43that the
01:43cost of travelling to and from work is still too expensive. And so I am extending the 5p cut until
01:51September 2026. And because I know that changes in wholesale prices are not always passed on to
01:59motorists, I am bringing in new rules to mandate petrol forecourts to share real-time price rises through
02:08a new fuel finder, empowering drivers to find the cheapest fuel, calling out rip-offs and
02:15strengthening competition, saving the average household £40 a year. That was the Chancellor,
02:20Rachel Reeves, speaking in February, delivering her spring statement. The government promised to extend
02:26the fuel duty cut and enforce honesty from petrol stations when it comes to wholesale prices and how
02:32they translate to the forecourt. But according to the experts, there are things we can do ourselves to
02:37keep our fuel bills from getting out of hand. Car preparation is something that we always speak
02:42to our motorists about. Making sure your tyres are fully inflated, making sure your car is fully
02:47serviced so it's working as efficiently as it possibly can be. Therefore saving fuel because it's
02:54running as it should be. Focus on your miles per gallon. So a lot of cars these days have got
03:00eco settings where you can obviously turn down the performance of your vehicle but obviously increase
03:05to miles per gallon. You can look at unnecessary clutter in your car. A lot of people use their
03:11boot as a kind of dumping ground but obviously excess weight causes more fuel consumption. So it's just
03:18these little practical tips. Go easy on the brakes when people are going to and from places. Don't be in
03:23a
03:23rush because the more you're on your brake, the more you're on your accelerator and again that's taking
03:27unnecessary fuel. Stick to the speed limits. Yes, we should be doing that anyway from a safety point of view,
03:34but actually from a fuel performance point of view, nice and steady is the way forward rather
03:39than this jerky. Unfortunately everyone's trying to do everything at 100 miles an hour. That's modern
03:45life. We've got to get to and from places, picking the kids up from school, going to and from work.
03:50But if
03:51we can try and leave enough time to make those journeys more relaxed and then you're driving your
03:56car in a more relaxed manner, that will also save fuel. Where you can get out of the car, have
04:00a look.
04:00Is there an ability to walk to the shops and save that bit of extra fuel? Experts say when fuel
04:07prices
04:07begin to climb, squeezing more miles out of every tank can make a meaningful difference to monthly
04:13household costs.
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