Drivers warned of rises to fuel at petrol stations in North East

Those filling up have already noticed a rise in cost at the pumps, with diesel and petrol among their highest in months.

At the weekend, the Petrol Retailers Association warned drivers to expect a rise of up to 3p per litre on top of their normal fuel costs in coming days.

Read more: Petrol shortage: Do I still need to go to work if I can't get petrol

However, explaining that this was not just down to the recent fuel shortage in parts of the region, they said petrol stations would likely up their price once resupplied.

But Brian Madderson, chairman of the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA), said a rise in costs was "not profiteering" as he said wholesale prices had gone up globally.

'3p a litre increases'

A fuel station at Sainsbury's in Darlington Picture: SARAH CALDECOTT

He said rising world oil prices mean motorists should expect the higher prices at the pumps as more fuel becomes available on Monday.

He said: “Expect anything from 1, 2 or even 3p a litre increases at the pump. This is not profiteering. This is genuine wholesale price increases caused by global factors.”

Over the weekend, FairFuelUK also issued a warning saying that they had been told by garage owners that pump prices would increase by up to 5p in coming weeks.

Howard Cox of FairFuelUK urged the Government to cut Fuel Duty as he said the Spending Review is just weeks away.

'It's now time to cut Fuel Duty'

He made the comments as he shared a different view to Mr Madderson, warning that some garage owners would begin to "take advantage" of the rise.

He said: “With the oil price hitting £80 a barrel, weaker sterling and of course, Grant Schapps’s naive “don’t panic buy” proclamation, the perfect opportunistic time to make hard-pressed drivers pay more to fill up, is in place for the greedy unchecked fuel supply chain businesses.

"And it’s set to go even higher - with the Budget just a few weeks away, it's time to cut fuel duty to put money back in drivers’ pockets.

"That National Insurance increase, energy prices hitting the sky, cuts in universal credit, higher inflation and furlough finished, it will be low-income families, small businesses and the haulage industry that will be crucified by a politically suicidal upsurge in fuel duty. It's now time to cut Fuel Duty."

'Situation is improving'

Addressing the fuel shortage on Monday morning, Richmondshire MP and Chancellor Rishi Sunak insisted the fuel situation for drivers “is improving" as he said army drivers had been drafted in to help deliver petrol and diesel.

Asked about petrol shortages, he told LBC Radio: “We know there’s enough petrol at our refineries and our terminals, and the issue is we’ve had a very steep demand spike… but the good news is it is getting better, so I think every single day since about last Tuesday we’ve delivered more petrol to forecourts than has been taken out, the number of people getting deliveries has increased, the volume of fuel getting delivered has increased.”

He added: “That is a situation that is improving, those are the facts. That said, we know that there are still some areas, army drivers have gone out.

“The situation has been improving now for, I think, over a week; every day, as the stats have come on, it’s getting better and, as demand settles back to more normal levels, the strong expectation is things will resolve themselves.

"People should know we’re doing everything we can.”

--

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

You can also follow our dedicated County Durham Facebook page for all the latest in the area by clicking here.

For all the top news updates from right across the region straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on newsdesk@nne.co.uk or contact 01325 505054