Cost of filling diesel car falls £3 in month

THE cost of filling up an average diesel car has dropped by £3 in a month as the average price of diesel at the pumps fell 5p a litre, data shows.

The fall – hailed as good news for people setting off on holidays – came as retailers began passing on the savings in the cost of wholesale diesel, which has been below that of petrol since the end of May.

At the start of July diesel was 120.63p, but by the end of the month it had dropped almost 5p to 115.74p, according to the RAC’s Fuel Watch data. And on July 29 the country saw the first forecourt price flip between diesel and petrol since the summer of 2001. The average cost of a litre of diesel is 116.28p, just below the average petrol price of 116.64p, the RAC said.

Half a penny a litre also came off the petrol price in the month.

Both petrol and diesel wholesale prices remain low as a result of the price of oil falling below the $60-a-barrel mark on July 3 and remaining there ever since. In the course of the month, the oil price fell 9 per cent from $61 to $52 a barrel. This – combined with the pound staying strong against the dollar at $1.56 US dollars – is keeping petrol and diesel cheaper, the RAC said.

RAC fuel spokesman Simon Williams said July was “a month of good news for motorists with diesel vehicles”.

He added: “The 5p-a-litre diesel saving recorded in July means the cost of filling up an average 55-litre diesel family car, such as a Ford Focus, has dropped by £3 in a month. This is particularly welcome for motorists setting out on their annual holidays who are driving long distances to destinations in the UK.”

He forecast diesel prices could fall to an average price of 111p a litre – a price last seen in January 2010. It this happens it will shave another £2 off a tank of diesel.

The cheaper diesel price is due to two refineries in Saudi Arabia producing diesel to meet European demand.