Fuel Prices ! We are Mugs !!

EycplUK

Returned from Belguim on Saturday 22nd to find our good old fuel prices were up again !
When i filled the car up in Belguim with Diesel it cost me €1.31 :jper Litre equivalent to £1.08 ! UK price :j, cheapest found on way home was £1.49.9 ! :mad:
We really are Mugs over here standing for the prices we pay !

Netwizard

Diesel is cheaper in Europe, however Unleaded is more or less the same price as it is in the UK.

forgotmyname

Move to Belgium?

149.9 on the motorways. Under £1.40 at the supermarkets.

But diesel cars are taxed higher over there are they not?

So balances things out.

torbrex

we have a thing in this country where the duty is increase on fuel automatically for no other reason that to put more revenue into the coffers, the idea that it helped to reduce the numbers of cars on the road just never rang true.

Having said that, it wont be too long before all of the Euro countries increase the duty on fuel to combat their borrowing levels.

andygb

Netwizard wrote: »

Diesel is cheaper in Europe, however Unleaded is more or less the same price as it is in the UK.

No it is not!

Unleaded at the moment is around E1.54 which equates to £1.23 at today's exchange rate.
We are being ripped off and it is plain to see.

Rolandtheroadie

So what are you going to do about it?

gabbleRatchet

What is this country "Europe"?

Every country in Europe has different levels of duty and we don't have the most expensive fuel. IIRC there are several countries with more expensive fuel

I've never understood this constant whine about us being "mugs" for putting up with it. If the tax wasn't on fuel it would go onto something else. It all goes into the same pot. If you think it's a green tax you really are a mug.

I drive about 80 miles a day up and down the A3. I generally try and cruise betwen 60 and 70 but I'm one of the slowest cars on the road. The fast lane is packed with cars hammering along at 80. I don't see much evidence of drivers trying to conserve fuel so I can only conclude that it's too cheap.

Hintza

Current prices in Euros (petrol/Diesel)

UK 1.66 1.71
Belgium 1.50 1.40
Germany 1.70 1.54
Denmark 1.84 1.61


We could always build toll roads to bring prices down but with infrastructure and wages etc that would be pretty inefficient.

Prices are down 3p from this week see HERE

whatmichaelsays

EycplUK wrote: »

Returned from Belguim on Saturday 22nd to find our good old fuel prices were up again !
When i filled the car up in Belguim with Diesel it cost me €1.31 :jper Litre equivalent to £1.08 ! UK price :j, cheapest found on way home was £1.49.9 ! :mad:
We really are Mugs over here standing for the prices we pay !

Would you prefer to trade Belgian rates of fuel duty for Belgian rates of income tax?

What you miss from your little comparison is that Belgian's start paying income tax at €6570 at 25% (rather that £8,000-ish @ 20% in the UK), pay 30% on anything over €8,070, 40% on anything over €11,480, 45% on anything over €19,130 and 50% on anything over €35,060.

In other words, somebody earning the UK national average of £24k in the UK is paying 20% tax on around £16000, whilst the same person in Belgium would be in the 45% bracket.

Who are the mugs again?

Joe_Horner

whatmichaelsays wrote: »

Would you prefer to trade Belgian rates of fuel duty for Belgian rates of income tax?

What you miss from your little comparison is that Belgian's start paying income tax at €6570 at 25% (rather that £8,000-ish @ 20% in the UK), pay 30% on anything over €8,070, 40% on anything over €11,480, 45% on anything over €19,130 and 50% on anything over €35,060.

In other words, somebody earning the UK national average of £24k in the UK is paying 20% tax on around £16000, whilst the same person in Belgium would be in the 45% bracket.

Who are the mugs again?

What you miss from your little comparison is that average salary in Belgium is around £29.5k (36800 yo-yos) rather than the £24k over here.

Also, a 2 bed apartment in Brussels is likely to be around £750 per month to rent (not everyone feels the need to own property out there). The same in London may well cost you that amount per week.

Public transport is also cheap and efficient - under 4 quid for a day's unlimited travel or about £44 monthly / £440 annual - compare that with TFL travel cards! It's also free for under 12s, over 65s and people on low income.

The point is, cost of living can only be compared by comparing everything relevent, starting with salaries, then including the basic essentials (shelter, food, water, power, essential travel etc), then adding luxuries like personal transport, eating out and so on to suit your lifestyle.

Trebor16

Joe_Horner wrote: »

Also, a 2 bed apartment in Brussels is likely to be around £750 per month to rent (not everyone feels the need to own property out there). The same in London may well cost you that amount per week.

£750 per week to rent a 2 bedroom flat in London? That might be the case in Knightsbridge or Westminster but not the case across all the boroughs.