Written by Thierry Labro
Published on 02.08.2022 • Edited on 02.08.2022 at 11:06
According to the RAC, Germany and Italy are the European countries that have done the most to protect consumers from soaring petrol and diesel prices. (Photo: Shutterstock)
A study by British organisation Royal Automobile Club claims that Luxembourg has done the least in Europe to protect consumers from soaring petrol prices.
The study published by the private arm of the RAC shows that only Luxembourg has done worse than the UK with a 4.52p (€0.054 on average since March) reduction in petrol prices, while only Croatia has done worse for diesel with 4.5p compared to 5p (€0.06) for the UK.
“The UK is one of the European countries that has done the least to support drivers with pump prices soaring since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, according to a new analysis of data from RAC Europe–leading UK drivers to pay up to 20p more per litre of petrol than drivers in France,” begins the Royal Automobile Club's statement issued on Monday.
“This analysis exposes an uncomfortable truth for the UK government–that compared to other European countries, it has done pretty much the least to support drivers during the current period of record fuel prices,” stated RCA spokesman Simon Williams. “The result is that the UK is one of the most expensive places to fill up. It sits above other countries that have historically charged more for fuel than UK retailers, including France and the Netherlands.”
“Perhaps even more frustratingly, countries that have not cut fuel taxes at all since March–including Greece and Austria–are still cheaper than the UK,” he continues. “At the opposite end of the spectrum, other countries have done a huge amount, Portugal, cutting duties seven times since March, and France and Spain, both
offering significant fuel discounts at the till.”
However, the RCA points out that 13 member states have intervened regarding fuel prices–conversely 14 have not–and starting prices are far from identical across Europe. The United Kingdom and Luxembourg are therefore “in the bottom half of the table” but neither the worst nor the best.
The press release makes the point that “although UK pump prices have finally started to fall in recent days – after significant pressure from the RAC on retailers to reflect that wholesale fuel prices have fallen for seven consecutive weeks–the average price of a litre of petrol or diesel is well above the European averages of €1.87 and €1.93. The UK is currently the second most expensive country for the average cost of a litre of petrol (€2.22)–behind Finland (€2.27) with Denmark also at €2.22–and the second most expensive for diesel at €2.33 per litre, with only Sweden charging more (€2.51).”
While the RAC criticised the UK government's insufficient consumer support, in Luxembourg it was considered too high and too expensive in view of the climate issues.
[The original figures in the press release were in pounds sterling and we have converted them at today's rate. Ed^]
This story was first published in French on Paperjam. It has been translated and edited for Delano.