AA: Fuel price not coming down with oil

6 August 2008

Fuel costs have not been reflecting the dip in the price of oil, the Automobile Association (AA) has claimed.

AA president Edmund King said that for every $2 (£1) drop in the cost of barrel of crude oil, 1p should be taken off the price of a litre of petrol and diesel.

However, since prices fell from their record high of nearly $147 last month to around $120 this week, petrol and diesel have only seen around a 5p cut each.

Mr King said that AA members were being forced to cut back on journeys, since "any pump price above £1 per litre causes hardship and misery for many million of car dependent motorists".

High oil prices have also led to increases in the cost of home heating oil, prompting a surge of fuel thefts in several areas.

Recently police in Scotland reported a "dramatic rise" in thefts of both heating oil and agricultural diesel.

Click here for home heating oil price trends