Record fall in petrol prices - AA

18 November 2008 03:50pm

The average price of petrol has fallen by record amounts over the past month, the AA revealed.

Average UK prices dipped from 106.4p a litre in mid-October to 94.86p a litre in mid-November.

The 11.54p drop comfortably beat the previous record fall of 7.9p between mid-August and mid-September this year.

Diesel prices fell 8.86p a litre in the last month - dipping from an average of 117.68p a litre in mid-October to 108.82 in mid-November.

The AA said the big reduction in the price of petrol at the pumps had slashed the cost of a 50-litre tank refill by £5.77, reduced the monthly petrol cost of a two-car family by £24.73 and pumped daily an extra £7.7 million into potential consumer spending from the reduced UK spending on petrol.

Compared with mid-July, when petrol prices peaked at 119.7p a litre, a tank of petrol now costs £12.42 less.

London is the most expensive place to buy petrol at present, with average prices at 95.8p a litre. North-west England currently has the cheapest petrol - at 94.2p a litre.

AA president Edmund King said: "Tesco set the momentum of big price falls with their 3p drop midway through October. However, Asda and Morrisons remain the cheapest supermarkets to buy petrol - on average almost a penny cheaper than their two bigger rivals.

"We have already spotted 91.9p a litre at some forecourts as competitive independents, often with their minimarts, try to undercut supermarket prices and make their money on non-fuel sales.

"However, the reality is that with the value of the pound against the dollar dropping more than 13% in the past month, some fuel stations would be charging close to 90p a litre."

© The Press Association