Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco cut fuel prices by 3p per litre in fresh supermarket petrol price war
Asda has sparked a petrol price war after cutting unleaded AND diesel prices by 3p a litre - and now Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Tesco have followed suit
A SUPERMARKET petrol price war has erupted as Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's and Tesco have announced plans to cut the price of petrol AND diesel by 3p a litre.
But the RAC says the cuts don't go far enough. The motoring giant says that based on falling wholesale prices, supermarkets should be slashing pump prices by at least 5p a litre.
From today, drivers using one of Asda's 319 forecourts will pay no more than 119.7p a litre for unleaded and no more than 131.7p a litre for diesel.
The supermarket, which sparked today's price war, says the move is a result of falling wholesale costs - the price it pays for petrol.
Asda says it's now dropped the price of unleaded fuel by up to 8p a litre since the start of the month.
Following quickly in Asda's footsteps is Sainsbury's, announcing that it too will slash diesel and unleaded prices by 3p a litre from Saturday at its 312 forecourts.
Three ways to cut your fuel costs
HERE are three ways to drive down your fuel costs:
- Make your car more fuel-efficient. You can do this by keeping your tyres inflated, taking the roof rack off, emptying your car of clutter and turning off your air con when driving at lower speeds.
- Find the cheapest fuel prices. Use PetrolPrices.com. All you need to do is enter your postcode and tell it how far you want to travel (up to 20 miles).
- Drive more efficiently. Some ways to do this, include:
- Accelerate gradually without over-revving
- Always drive on the highest possible gear
- If you can, allow your car to slow down naturally as your brake is a money burner
- Re-starting your car is expensive, if you can, keep moving
Morrisons and Tesco have also followed suit, announcing a 3p a litre cut to unleaded and diesel at their 335 and 500 forecourts respectively from tomorrow.
Only last week Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury's all cut petrol prices.
Over the past six months, the cost of filling up a typical 55-litre family car that runs on petrol or diesel has risen by around £6.
But the RAC says the cuts haven't gone far enough.
Simon Williams, spokesperson for the motoring body, said: “While this is a welcome price cut, it has been an extremely long time coming.
"The cost of buying petrol on the wholesale market has dropped like a stone so we should be looking for at least 5p to come off the average price of unleaded at the pumps."
But he concedes that even a small drop in prices is good news. “The supermarkets’ role in influencing pricing at all other forecourts cannot be understated.
"Without significant price movement from the big players in a falling wholesale market, there is little to encourage smaller retailers to shift their own prices to the benefit of consumers."
Average petrol prices across the UK now stand at 128.8p a litre for unleaded and at 136.6p a litre for diesel, according to petrol comparison website PetrolPrices.com.
More on money
This year's Budget did see a boost for motorists though as the Chancellor scrapped a 2p a litre fuel duty rise.
The move was a huge victory for The Sun’s long-running Keep It Down campaign — and for our readers.
We have persuaded successive Chancellors to halt the annual tax raids on motorists, allowing them to keep almost £1,000 now in total since 2010.
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