‘Fuel companies are taking the mickey’
As the cost of diesel rockets, haulage company boss Barry Proctor tells Fahad Tariq about the pressure his industry faces...
AHAULAGE company boss has called for more support from the Government due to concerns over rising fuel prices.
Talke-based Barry Proctor Services has 26 lorries operating every day.
Each lorry has different tank sizes but all of them run on diesel and are filled at stations all over the country. Some tanks are topped up at dieselonly filling stations.
Barry says the cost of fuel has ‘gone up considerably’ this year.
In the last three weeks alone, the business has seen fuel prices rise by 21.5p per litre.
Comparatively, the price for diesel in March was 35p per litre cheaper than what it is today.
In April the business was paying 135.33p per litre but that’s shot up to 162.23p per litre, excluding VAT, as of last week.
Mr Proctor said: “It has a huge impact.
“We are fortunate that with our main customer, we have a fuel escalator in place so as the fuel goes up our rates change every month.
“Last month the fuel escalator was running at 17.5 per cent over what we started at. It’s gone up even more since then.
“It’s putting pressure on our customers because they’ve got to increase their prices. Most of what we carry goes by road so it affects all the hauliers but it also affects all their customers.
“The Road Haulage Association has asked the Government for an essential user rebate. That hasn’t been forthcoming but the Government has got to realise that the cost of diesel is putting the cost of everything up.”
The Government announced a 5p per litre cut to fuel duty in March, to help reduce costs for motorists.
Mr Proctor said: “They cut the 5p in fuel duty but we never saw that, I don’t think anybody did. There wasn’t any point in the fuel duty rebate.
“The essential user rebate will decrease the cost of diesel straight away. We’ve given our drivers a bonus to improve their fuel.
“The Government is not doing enough, I am very disappointed with what they are doing. The fuel companies are taking the mickey out of us at the minute.
“During the lockdown fuel was cheap because they weren’t selling any so any excuse to put it up and they will do it.
“A friend of mine has been to Spain. Their government has knocked 30 pence a litre off so he only had to pay 1.20 instead of 1.50.
“Our government should do something similar because a lot of people are going to struggle to pay their heating bills, not only fuel. I’ve never known fuel to be so expensive.”
Issuing advice on saving fuel, Mr Proctor added: “Drive a little bit slower.
“You will save a lot more fuel if you drive slower. I drive at 50mph unless I’m on the motorway.
“Walk when you can instead of taking the car, if you can. I see people taking kids to school and they’ve probably only driven about 500 yards – walk the kids to school.
“If we started to use the cars less and bought less fuel it might bring the cost of it down.
“If fuel prices go as they are, an awful lot of hauliers will not be able to carry on.
“Then your supply chain will fall on its face.
“We are stable and lucky we have got the fuel escalator in place. The Government is making a fortune in VAT so they can afford to knock the duty down again.”