Pump prices rise 4 pence in a month

If you have been to a petrol station recently, you may have noticed prices have been increasing once again.

Crude oil, from which unleaded and diesel are refined, had been increasing in price from mid to late March and has continued this trend into April. Brent Crude now sits shy of $90 a barrel, a price not seen since October 2023. This is an $8 (10%) increase in the last 30 days.

October 2023 saw prices for unleaded and diesel at £1.54 and £1.62, respectively, around 4% higher than where they are currently. This was the start of a decrease in price as we headed into the new year. Prices at the pump bottomed around mid-January. Since then, prices at the pump have increased steadily, taking a brief slow-down in March before the recent increases.

These crude price increases have, in turn, pushed prices at the pump north, with average unleaded prices sitting around £1.48 and diesel at £1.56.

Sainsbury’s and Tesco had been the lowest-priced supermarkets leading into April. Both have increased prices since the Easter Bank Holiday, along with all other brands. Sainsbury’s currently has the lowest average price of all brands. They also have a low pricing spread across their petrol stations. This means that no matter where you are in the country, the prices are quite consistent.

Morrisons has the lowest pricing spread of any brand, but price increases in the last few days may make them less competitive than the other supermarkets.

Asda, which has historically been the lowest-priced brand, wasn’t as competitive as the other supermarkets across March and increased prices towards the end of March when other supermarkets were able to hold their prices. Since then, however, their prices have held and are now in line with those of other major supermarkets.

Brighton, Dumfries and Glasgow are among the highest-priced regions in the UK, with Bolton and County Down enjoying the lowest prices.

Checking the PetrolPrices app ahead of filling up is the best way to ensure you can make an informed decision on where to buy. We have been working hard to improve our service, and we now have more price updates than ever, with over 200,000 price updates each week.

The outlook for prices over the next week is quite bleak for drivers. Brent Crude prices have been increasing over the last couple of weeks, and we haven’t yet hit October pump prices when crude was at a similar price.

Crude prices have, however, found some resistance at $90 and fell back slightly over the past few days, with news that Israel had reduced its troops in southern Gaza and began a new round of ceasefire talks with Hamas.

How do prices look locally near you? Have you seen them increase? Let us know in the comments below.