Petrol stations accused of hiking prices as fuel hits £1.54 a litre
Drivers have accused petrol stations of ramping up prices to take advantage of panicked motorists.
Motorists have reported forecourts ramping up prices at the pumps to as much as 154.9p a litre.
Government figures from a week ago show the average price for unleaded petrol was 134.86p a litre, and 137.35p for diesel.
But Experian Catalist says that as of yesterday average prices had climbed to 136.69p and 138.58p respectively.
Cox said he expects pump prices to rise further over the coming weeks, by between 3p and 10p a litre.
Motorists have this morning reported being charged at a forecourt where the advertised price is 134.9p.
The claims of profiteering comes as Environment Secretary George Eustice insists the Government has “no plans at the moment” to bring in the army to drive petrol tankers to fill up struggling forecourts.
Howard Cox, founder of , said the price hikes were an example of "opportunism at its lowest" and were likely to hurt families, small self-employed businesses and taxis the hardest.
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Rural garages and drivers are also likely to be hit, as well as independent garages and small franchises.
Cox added: "Everyone knows that what we pay at the pumps does not follow any logic or fairness. For decades, the fuel supply chain has ripped off drivers at will."
Why are petrol prices rising?
UK motorists are in crisis mode as a nationwide lorry driver shortage has caused many petrol stations to run dry.
The past few days have seen panic-buying, long queues and even fights at the petrol pumps as drivers battle to fill their fuel tanks.
Edmund King, president at the AA President, said: “For the vast majority of drivers there is no need to rush to the pumps, and we urge people to only fill up when essential. There is no need to top up ‘just in case’."
Cox added: "If everyone calms down and doesn't fill their tanks up to the brim, there is enough for everyone. The Government must promote a sensible approach."
The AA said this was a usual pattern whenever there is panic buying.
It said retailer hike prices to deter anyone topping up their fuel tank unnecessarily, as well to to recover lost income from drivers buying only fuel, rather than also shopping in store.
It added that capping the amount of fuel people can buy in one go can also help to ";dial down the frenzy" but can put shop staff in a difficult position.
Indeed, there have been reports of fights breaking out on some forecourts. A number of petrol stations have also imposed a £30 limit on fuel purchases.
King advised drivers to be careful if fuelling in a hurry, as the motoring body has seen a rise in people putting the wrong fuel into their vehicle over recent days.
Rising wholesale prices are not helping the situation along with a weak pound compared to the US dollar. The AA said whole petrol costs had reached 44.5p a litre by Friday.
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Fair Fuel UK is calling for the Government to get retired HGV drivers back on the roads and set up short-term crash courses for lorry driving training to help.
The Sun has recently launched a campaign to help recruit thousands of HGV drivers.
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