Petrol prices hit lowest since February

Graham_Devon

Did you do a double take at the title too?!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/nov/04/petrol-prices-cut-fuel

The article explains that petrol prices are at their lowest since Feb this year. However, an interesting statistic in the article is that "families" (whatever a family is classed as) are £15 worse off per WEEK than this time last year.

I.e. on average, it's costing an extra £780 a year, compared to this time last year.

That's massive!

Really2

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Did you do a double take at the title too?!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/nov/04/petrol-prices-cut-fuel

The article explains that petrol prices are at their lowest since Feb this year. However, an interesting statistic in the article is that "families" (whatever a family is classed as) are £15 worse off per WEEK than this time last year.

I.e. on average, it's costing an extra £780 a year, compared to this time last year.

That's massive!

I presume they have the "average family" as 2 car household & working.
It would be diffiult to get a £60 increase a month on one car unless everyone was doing high millage?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/4969324.stm

The average annual mileage in a single car household is now 8,000 miles. If there are two cars the main car does about 14,000 miles while the second car does about 6,000.

Sounds about right for 20,000 miles.

Graham_Devon

Really2 wrote: »

I presume they have the "average family" as 2 car household & working.
It would be diffiult to get a £60 increase a month on one car unless everyone was doing high millage?

I guess that's the law of averages coming into play.

I know I'm spending around £38 a month (approx as haven't filled everything in yet) more for myself, as I keep records for business purposes. Just glad it's not £60!

Really2

Sorry did a later edit, but it sounds about right if you base it on the milage for two "average" cars.

Graham_Devon

Well I'd have to respectfully disagree that the research only covers people with two cars or has anything to do with whether they have 2 cars or not.

Some "families" will do 40k a year, while some will do 5k. The average will, obviously, fall somewhere in the middle.

ruggedtoast

May well be a loss leader to get people into their stores, it would save a whopping £1.20 on a tank for most cars, but as we know, most of the cost is tax anyway so the only people able to appreciably lower petrol prices are in the treasury.

Out of town retail parks are suffering due to the quintuple whammy of the recession, 20% VAT, raging inflation, devaluing sterling, and record gas prices.

Its becoming rapidly apparent that Cleggeron-Osbourne & co do not have the faintest idea what to do about any of this other than hope people keep putting up with it.

Meanwhile as ordinary families squirm, finances stressed to breaking point, the 1% lives in unimaginable luxury rapidly gating off their houses, their workplaces, their hidden untaxed income, and their lives, from the hardship springing up around them.

Occupy!

Really2

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Well I'd have to respectfully disagree that the research only covers people with two cars or has anything to do with whether they have 2 cars or not.

Some "families" will do 40k a year, while some will do 5k. The average will, obviously, fall somewhere in the middle.

Well it says the average one car family does 8000 miles?

The average annual mileage in a single car household is now 8,000 miles

Indeed, so that is why it is how much the average has gone up for an average family in the reaserch.

Like some family will have gone up less some will have gone up more. That is how averages work?

a £60 PM average increase has got to mean if it was based on a single car they would have to do a hell of a lot of miles.
They seem to use ONS stats etc, so they must be using some kind of similar stat to get to a £60pm increase.
I can tell from experience if it was based on one car doing average miles it would not be a £60PM increase.

redux

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Did you do a double take at the title too?!

I think that the title is suspect. Perhaps some journalists have been taken in, and ought to do a bit of work rather than just parrot a press release which fell on their desk.

I'm certain that fuel was a bit cheaper a few weeks ago, and also in about July.

MSE has fallen for it too

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/48311049#Comment_48311049

I've commented this morning on that thread that there is now a much larger disparity between diesel prices here and abroad than there used to be, and that and the difference between petrol and diesel prices here makes me sceptical about the degree of competition here.

wannabehermit

Graham_Devon wrote: »

Did you do a double take at the title too?!

Damn right I did! Diesel down here has just hit 140.9 this weekend for the 1st time. We've seen it at well over that in lots of parts of the country but it has stayed below that here until now.

Our supermarkets last week were priced at 137.9 (T), 136.9 (S) and 135.9 (A). Today looking at petrolprices.com they are 138.9, 136.9 and 136.7 respectively. So higher than they were last week round here let alone last Feb.

Graham_Devon

Really2 wrote: »

Well it says the average one car family does 8000 miles?


Indeed, so that is why it is how much the average has gone up for an average family in the reaserch.

Like some family will have gone up less some will have gone up more. That is how averages work?

a £60 PM average increase has got to mean if it was based on a single car they would have to do a hell of a lot of miles.
They seem to use ONS stats etc, so they must be using some kind of similar stat to get to a £60pm increase.
I can tell from experience if it was based on one car doing average miles it would not be a £60PM increase.

It doesn't matter whether it's one car or two.

It's just an average of the mileage, regardless of whether they have one or two cars.

Really2

The £60 is an odd one. looking at the AA site petrol is up 6.2p since the start of the year.
That would mean the average family buying 967 litres or 153 Gallons! to = £60 increase.

Seems a bit high? not arguing petrol has gone up but would love to know how they get that figure?
I make that around 55,000 miles per year on a 30mpg car.