Diesel now costing UK retailers less than petrol

Diesel drivers get a really raw deal in the UK. After years of encouraging people to switch to diesels, the government has now had a change of heart and is taking the opposite stance. Diesel owners in London’s Islington borough are being particularly penalised, by being charged to park outside their own houses, as we reported earlier in the year.

To top it all, diesel costs more than unleaded in the UK, with prices the opposite way around for almost everyone else in Europe.

Now, to add insult to injury, The Daily Mail has reported that wholesalers are actually charging fuel retailers less for diesel than than they are for unleaded petrol. This brings into sharp focus just how ludicrous the UK price difference really is.

According to the report, wholesale prices for diesel have sat between one and three pence less per litre than prices for unleaded throughout all of June. Despite this, diesel drivers typically pay four or five pence more at the pumps.

The RAC now describe diesel drivers as being “demonised” due to emissions and say that owners of diesels deserve to be “treated fairly.” They add that by rights, the price of diesel should drop by around five pence per litre in the next fortnight, though they don’t expect this to happen. After monitoring how these things tend to pan out over a long period, we don’t hold out much hope either.