UK drivers have seen a welcome drop in unleaded petrol prices, now averaging 135p per litre (ppl) – a level not witnessed since October 2021. This decline is largely due to an oversupply in the wholesale market, which has pushed down the price of Brent crude oil. The strengthening of the pound (GBP) against the US dollar (USD), rising from $1.27 to $1.33 USD/GBP between July and September, has also helped lower prices at the pump, as a stronger pound makes oil imports cheaper. 

While some reports, including from the RAC, suggest prices may continue to fall and could reach a three-year low by the end of September, our analysis indicates that further significant drops are unlikely. The price of Brent crude oil has fallen sharply from $86 per barrel in July to $69 by mid-September, a 20% decrease. However, prices have since rebounded to $75 per barrel by the 25th of September, suggesting that the market has stabilised. 

At the forecourts, unleaded prices have dropped from 145ppl in mid-July to the current 135ppl. Yet, the pace of these reductions has slowed, and without continued declines in wholesale oil prices, the likelihood of further significant cuts at the pump is low. 

For now, price competition among local petrol stations will play a crucial role in determining whether drivers can benefit from lower prices. Supermarkets like Morrisons have led the charge, consistently undercutting rivals by over a penny per litre compared to Sainsbury’s and Tesco. Checking local prices using tools like the PetrolPrices app can help drivers find the best deals, as some independent stations are also offering competitive rates. 

Regionally, London remains the most expensive area for unleaded fuel, while Northern Ireland boasts the lowest prices. The gap between the two has narrowed from 8ppl in May to 5.5ppl in September. 

Despite the recent drops, unleaded prices are still down by 13% compared to this time last year, but with 56% of the overall cost still made up of VAT and fuel duty, significant further reductions may be hard to come by. 

When heading out on a car journey, a key part of establishing the atmosphere of your upcoming trip is the music, with over half of drivers (59%) listening to music for the majority of their car rides. But with plenty of choice, it can be difficult to decide what should be on your driving playlist. 

In a bid to discover the top artists and genres for drivers of each car brand, Group 1 Automotive analysed 350,000 YouGov profiles, revealing how our music tastes differ from driver to driver. 

Overall, pop music comes out as the top genre, with 2 in 5 (41%) drivers voting it to be their favourite genre.

Other top genres include rock (37%), R&B (23%), indie (21%) classical (21%), and country music (21%). 

However, some drivers did have an eclectic mix of genres, with dance music voted one of the top genres for Audi and Tesla drivers.

For those heading on a road trip with any Hyundai, Peugeot, or Volvo drivers, be prepared for some show tunes, as musicals made the top genre lists of these drivers. 

When it comes to the artists we’re listening to, our favourites vary from car brand to brand. However, overall, Fleetwood Mac was voted as the top artist amongst drivers (71%), followed by Diana Ross (67%) and Kylie Minogue (66%). Phil Collins (66%) and Adele (66%) took the fourth and fifth spot in the study. 

Although Fleetwood Mac takes the top spot for the majority, our top artists do differ amongst some drivers, with Coldplay being crowned top artist for BMW drivers. Meanwhile the Eagles are top voted for Skoda drivers, and Ed Sheeran came out on top both Kia and Mercedes drivers. 

Analysing the favourite genres and top 10 artists for Audi, BMW, Ford, Mercedes, Toyota and Volkswagen drivers, Group 1 put together the ultimate driving playlist for each of the car brand drivers. 

From rock classics to James Blunt tracks, playlists for each car brand can be found here. 

Whats your go to song, artist or genre when driving? Let us know in the comments.

With new number plates introduced this month, September is naturally a more popular time for motorists to sell their car for a new model – and, as a result, the best time of year for new drivers to snag their dream vehicle. But which car is the best fit for your first ever?

Data reveals the most affordable cars for new drivers

• The Nissan Micra is the cheapest car for new drivers, with an average second hand price tag of £1,990.
• The Renault Megane has the lowest insurance estimate, at £2,493 per year.
• The highest initial price tag in the top 10 is the Nissan Note at £3,273.
• Connor Campbell, car insurance expert at Independent Advisor Car Insurance ranks the best cars for new drivers.

The Nissan Micra has been crowned the most affordable car for new drivers, according to a new study by Independent Advisor Car Insurance. 

The Car Insurance experts studied the average second hand prices for popular car models, as well as insurance quotes for young drivers for each model, to determine the most affordable options for a new driver.

The ten most affordable used car models for new drivers

The key factors:

• Conduct your own insurance research: Obtaining insurance quotes for multiple models that you’re considering is wise, in order to ensure that you can afford both the car payments and the insurance expenses for the year. Insurance is dependent on many factors including age, location, and available home parking, so be sure to check and compare your quotes via comparison websites.

• Conduct your own insurance research: Obtaining insurance quotes for multiple models that you’re considering is wise, in order to ensure that you can afford both the car payments and the insurance expenses for the year. Insurance is dependent on many factors including age, location, and available home parking, so be sure to check and compare your quotes via comparison websites.

• Pay attention to the insurance group: Every car belongs to an insurance group, numbered one to 50, that’ll make it more or less expensive to insure, with cars that fall into the lower groups being less expensive to insure than those in the higher groups. So, when shopping around for a second hand car, try and find one in a lower insurance group in order to keep the cost of your cover down.

• Consider the nature of your driving needs: These should always be a deciding factor when buying your car. For instance, if you are planning to do a lot of city driving, a micro or a hatchback may be more suited to your use, as opposed to a coupe or SUV.

• Factor in maintenance costs: Once you have decided on the type of car you are looking for, it is important to look into the running costs that it will incur. If you’re looking to have a cost effective and efficient car, these will often do more than 60mpg. Anything higher than 50 mpg can be regarded as good fuel consumption.

• MOT and service history: If you have the registration, you can check the MOT history of any car online via the government website. However, the car’s service history may not be so easy to maintain if it isn’t provided by the seller. Most used cars should come with a service log book, so make sure to keep an eye out for this information.

• Once you get your car, be sure to maintain it: After going through the lengthy process of researching and buying your car, maintaining it is the key to getting as much life out of it as you can, as well as keeping prices down. Some easier things you can do to maintain the health of your vehicle include; checking the tyre pressure and keeping this at an optimal level for your vehicle, change the engine oil at adequate intervals, change the coolant as needed, and finally, never ignoring any warning lights (should they appear) on your dashboard.

Unleaded prices dropped over 4 pence per litre (ppl) throughout August, settling with an average price of just under £1.40 per litre. Prices as low as this were last seen back at the start of the year, during the 3rd week of January.

There was also good news for diesel drivers, as August opened with an average price of £1.49 before falling to £1.44 at the end of the month.

Currently, unleaded and diesel prices average 139.0ppl and 143.5ppl respectively. Although we saw unleaded prices at these levels early in the year, it was back in July 2023 that diesel was priced at a similar level.

Every driver knows how nostalgic it is to think of your first car. Just like the stuffed animal you wouldn’t go anywhere without as a child, our first cars are special to us. And new Dick Lovett research finds that more than a third (34%) of British drivers admit to missing their old banger. 

Is it a case of the ‘car that got away’ for British drivers? Well, it seems first cars occupy a special place in British nostalgia, with 3 in 5 (58%) drivers feeling nostalgic when they think about their first car. Another two-fifths (41%) of drivers even went so far as to say they still feel attached to their first car.

While Brits may miss their first cars, Dick Lovett’s research found that they didn’t hold onto them for long, as the average driver only kept their first car for around 3 years. 

However, with the average age of cars getting scrapped in 2023 sitting at 17, there’s a good chance many Brits’ first cars aren’t around anymore. Similarly, as car manufacturers discontinue old fuel models in favour of EVs, many of the UK’s most popular first cars could now be at risk of ‘extinction’. 

But, which ones could be the first to go? 

To allow Dick Lovett to make their extinction predictions, they looked at which of the UK’s most popular first cars are no longer in production and analysed how many of them are still licensed to drive on British roads, as well as the rate at which they’ve been scrapped over the past 5 years.

Which of the UK’s favourite first cars are the ‘rarest’? 

While some of the UK’s first cars are more at risk of extinction than others, which are you least likely to see on the roads? 

Looking at all the most popular first cars – both those still in production and discontinued – Dick Lovett’s analysis found the following 10 to have the least amount of ‘road-worthy’ cars left in the UK: 

Is your car on the list? Let us know in the comments. 

New research from Dick Lovett reveals that 7 in 10 (68%) British drivers don’t know how to merge in turn properly with lane closures.

Merging in turn is a traffic flow measure that makes cars from two or more lanes merge into one. Basically, all it does is allow multiple lanes of traffic to join together, with road users taking turns to merge into the new singular lane. Seems simple, right? Think again.

The correct way to merge in turn sparks debate wherever you go, and Dick Lovett decided to survey British drivers to see exactly which methods Brits are using most.

Their research shows the majority of drivers (68%) tend to move out of a closing lane immediately – or as soon as possible – after seeing a lane closure warning sign for road works or an accident. Why? Their main reason is to be ‘polite’ to other drivers.

If there’s something Brits are good at, it’s queuing. And a resounding 7 in 10 (69%) drivers told Dick Lovett they think it’s rude when other drivers don’t queue to get in from a closing lane early on.

What’s more, a third (33%) of drivers even said they actively try to stop other drivers from merging in turn when they do so at the ‘last minute’. Interestingly, men are 6% more likely to do this than women (36% vs 30%).

So, should you queue early for the sake of politeness or merge in turn? What exactly is the correct thing to do?

According to the Highway Code, drivers should wait to merge in turn at the point at which the two lanes merge into one unless it’s not busy, with section 134 stating: 

“You should follow the signs and road markings and get into the lane as directed.

“In congested road conditions do not change lanes unnecessarily.

“Merging in turn is recommended but only if safe and appropriate when vehicles are travelling at a very low speed, e.g. when approaching roadworks or a road traffic incident. 

“It is not recommended at high speed.”

The driving experts at Dick Lovett comment: “If the 68% of drivers moving lanes too early out of politeness decided to use both lanes, up until the merge in turn sign, it would result in less congestion during a lane closure as it allows the traffic to have a more consistent flow.  

“Next time drivers find themselves in slow moving traffic that’s approaching a merge in turn sign, they should try to resist the temptation to move over too quickly out of politeness and use all available lanes until they can’t anymore. 

“Granted, it’s difficult to beat the deep-routed British societal expectation of queuing, but moving over too soon will merely cause extended congestion. 

“Also, try to resist joining the third of drivers who stop people merging if they think they’re doing it too late.

“This could be classed as dangerous driving, and it’s not your right to stop people entering the queue.”

Brent crude oil prices fell through July, topping out at a little over $87 a barrel on the 4th  before falling throughout the month to close around $80 a barrel.

At the pumps, motorists had enjoyed a downward trend on unleaded through June, whereas July has been much more consistent, with unleaded prices averaging between 144.5ppl and 145.5ppl for much of the month. However, the wholesale price drops appear to be making their way through to the pumps, as the month closed with an average unleaded price of 144.2ppl.

Diesel has seen a similar trend, with July opening at 149.5ppl before reaching highs of 150.5ppl in the middle of the month before falling back as we closed the month with a price of 149.2ppl.

With Brent crude prices falling throughout July, drivers should expect to see price drops into the first half of August at the least.

Of the supermarkets, Tesco is leading the way on unleaded and diesel pricing. Tesco is currently averaging 141ppl on unleaded and 146ppl on diesel. In general, the supermarkets have been relatively consistent throughout July, with the highest average price of unleaded and diesel, occurring on the 19th of July (141.9 and 146.9, respectively). This comes 15 days after the peak in Brent crude was observed.

In addition to falling Brent crude prices, the pound has strengthened against the dollar. A stronger pound means lower pump prices. At the start of July, the rate stood at $1.26 to the GBP. In mid-July, this reached $1.30 before falling back to $1.28 at the close of July.

Lower Brent crude prices and a strong pound should mean lower pump prices. Drivers should see the pump prices fall over the next two weeks (maybe longer). As always, we will bring daily price changes to the PetrolPrices app, so check for the latest prices. If you would like prices straight to your inbox, consider setting up a Price Alert at a frequency that suits you to stay informed.

Over half of Britons are not planning to make the switch to driving an electric car with 86% say they prefer petrol or diesel vehicles. That’s according to a new survey by the price comparison experts at Quotezone.co.uk who quizzed motorists on making the change to an electric vehicle.

57% of those questioned said they were not planning to go electric with 8% claiming they will only make the switch before the 2035 deadline set by the government.

78% said they are not looking forward to the switch to an electric vehicle with only 9% saying they intend to make the switch within the next two years.  A fifth (19%) say the switch will have to wait 2-10 years.

By 2035 all newly registered cars in the UK will need to be electric or zero emission vehicles. Petrol and diesel vehicles will no longer be for sale. By 2030 80% of new cars sold in Great Britain will be zero emission with that figure reaching 100% by 2035.

These changes fall under the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate (ZEV) which sets out the percentage of new zero emission cars manufacturers will be required to produce each year up to 2030.

Questioned on why they’re not prepared to make the switch to electric earlier, over a third (36%) of respondents said the cars were too expensive with one in five (21%) saying the charging infrastructure wasn’t good enough – with over 62,000 charging points across just under 33,000 charging locations in the UK.

Other reasons included concerns over mileage (11%), the cost of installing a home charging device (4%) and high insurance costs (2%).

Of all engine types, insurance costs are normally highest for an electric vehicle, currently averaging around £996 annually – that’s 54% more expensive than the average petrol vehicle and 13% more expensive than this time last year.  While diesel and petrol insurance premiums look to be starting to decrease slightly throughout 2024 – electric premiums continue to remain high.

Have you thought about the switch to Electric yet?
Has the price of car insurance put you off?

Let us know in the comments.

New research from Dick Lovett reveals nearly half (45%) of British drivers say they’ve experienced another road user deliberately speeding up when they try to overtake them. However, another 1 in 9 (11%) drivers admit to being the ones doing this.

To understand the reasons why, Dick Lovett have teamed up with professional psychologists to explain. The research also reveals how many drivers are guilty of other bad driving behaviours, including brake checking, undertaking, racing other drivers and fast-lane hogging.

If there’s one thing that unites all drivers, regardless of skill or how much they use their car, it’s the passing of judgement on how other drivers are using the road.

However, new research from Dick Lovett into Britain’s bad driving habits reveals that some drivers will even go as far as trying to control the actions other road users take if they don’t agree with them. The research found that nearly half (45%) of British drivers have experienced another road user deliberately speeding up when they try to overtake them. And another 1 in 9 (11%) drivers admit to being the ones doing this.

To get to the bottom of this overtaking behaviour, Dick Lovett teamed up with two expert psychologists, Mark Vahrmeyer, a UKCP psychotherapist and co-founder of Brighton and Hove Psychotherapy, and Dr Rebekah Wanic, a psychologist and self-optimisation coach at Vent to Reinvent to explain just why drivers do this.

Rebekah explains that other drivers will participate in stopping other drivers overtaking them as a form of punishment: “Some drivers prevent passing because they are bothered by the speed of another driver and may feel that they are behaving in an aggressive or unsafe way, so the prevention is a form of punishment.”

Rebekah continues: “Punishing others is very psychologically rewarding. There may also be an element of competition for some who don’t like to lose, and feel that getting passed is a sign that they are not winning the race. This mindset is generally not conducive to safe or respectful driving, and when one notices such impulses, it is best to try to reign them in.”

Similarly, Mark explains that for many drivers, “Sharing the road with others is a collaborative, albeit, defensive experience.” When it comes to overtaking, Mark explains that it is “probably the most contentious manoeuvre we can make in terms of how the driver in front or behind may react.”
Mark also explains why some drivers may feel the need to stop other drivers overtaking them on the road: “Being overtaken is very different to ‘letting another pass. The former is done to us and the latter done by us. And therein lies the rub – many drivers experience being overtaken as a win-lose proposition, with the person being overtaken as the loser. For some, overtaking is simply personal and a criticism of their driving.”

The research also revealed the truth behind the number of people behind 4 other common ‘bad’ driving behaviours:

1.     Fast-lane hogging

Dick Lovett’s research found that 1 in 7 (13%) drivers say they prefer to drive in the right hand lane on the motorway or bypass, even when they’re not overtaking another driver. We also found that men are guiltier of this than women (15% vs 10%), and younger drivers aged 18-24 even more so, with more than a third (36%) saying they do this.

Fast-lane hogging may seem more convenient than weaving in and out of the left hand lane, but the fast-lane should only be used by drivers who are overtaking traffic. Once the manoeuvre is complete, the overtaking driver must move back into the slow or middle lane where there is one.

Delaying moving back in after overtaking and ‘hogging’ the fast lane can land drivers with points on their licence and a fine if the police deem it as careless driving under driving laws.

In fact, according to rule 264 of the Highway Code, you should: Keep in the left lane unless overtaking. If you are overtaking, you should return to the left lane when it is safe to do so.

2.     Undertaking 

Undertaking is when a driver passes another vehicle on the left of a bypass or motorway, and Dick Lovett’s research found that more than a quarter (27%) of drivers say they’d undertake another driver if they felt they were going too slow, with men 10% more likely to do this than women (31% vs 21%). 

In the Highway Code, it is referred to as ‘overtaking on the left’, and while it is not technically illegal, the code does not recommend it. The only exceptions to the rule are when drivers are in slow-moving traffic, if the lane is moving faster than a lane on the right. 

However, it is not deemed an acceptable reason when one driver thinks another is driving too slow. 

3.     Brake checking 

Dick Lovett’s research found that roughly 1 in 6 (17%) drivers told us they ‘brake check’ other drivers if they’re driving too close behind them. Again, young drivers (18-24) are the worst for this, where more than double the amount (36%) say they brake check. 

Brake checking is a bad driving habit that involves sharply hitting your brakes with another vehicle behind you for no other reason than warning the driver behind you that you think they’re too close. The intention is to make the unsuspecting driver slam on their brakes or swerve to avoid rear-ending your vehicle. 

Many people do this from the belief that insurance companies would find the victim of the brake check at fault for not leaving enough space, but brake checking is illegal, and you can be charged with dangerous driving if you’re caught. Dangerous driving in the UK can carry an unlimited fine and a two-year prison sentence. 

4.     Racing other drivers

Street racing and car meets are a consistent problem for traffic police in the UK, and Dick Lovett’s research found that over 1 in 6 (16%) drivers say they’ve raced another driver before. This figure rises to 1 in 5 (19%) when looking just at male drivers (vs 12% for women).

However, the most concerning results were amongst young drivers, where these figures almost tripled. Our survey found that almost half (45%) of drivers aged 18-24 say they’ve raced another driver before. 

UK law considers street racing as dangerous driving under the Road Traffic Act 1998, section 2, and it is subject to severe penalties.