Fuel retailers will be forced to share their petrol and diesel prices within 30 minutes of any changes under new Government regulations designed to help drivers.
A new scheme is being launched to ensure retailers share information about pump prices through freely available data with expectations that price comparison tools will be rolled out.
According to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), the so-called PumpWatch is expected to be available through apps, websites, maps and in-car devices.
The move follows the successful use of the Consumer Council Fuel Price Checker in Northern Ireland, with prices in the nation usually being around five pence cheaper per litre when compared to the rest of the UK.
Drivers may be able to access the fuel price data through apps in the future
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While the measures are still being consulted on, drivers could save 3p per litre by searching for the cheapest prices in their local area.
Data from RAC Fuel Watch shows that petrol costs an average of 139.89p per litre, while drivers of diesel vehicles will pay slightly less than £1.48.
Petrol recently fell to its lowest level in almost two years earlier this month, with pump prices falling to levels not seen since before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Claire Coutinho, Energy Security Secretary, said: “Our work on competition and transparency is working. Drivers are now paying the lowest average price at the pump for two years.
“We are forcing retailers to share live information on their prices within 30 minutes of any change in price, helping drivers to find the best deal at the pump.
“This will put motorists back in the driving seat and bring much-needed competition back to the forecourts.”
A number of major fuel retailers – including the “big four” supermarkets – signed up to a voluntary fuel price publishing scheme set up by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), although the new DESNZ plans would make it a legal requirement.
The Government department said that a similar scheme launched in Queensland, Australia, helped motorists save an average of A$93 or £49 per year.
Howard Cox, founder of FairFuelUK, has been one of the biggest proponents of a fuel price scheme and has consistently slammed major retailers for profiteering and taking advantage of a captive audience.
Cox, who is also the Reform UK candidate for London Mayor, added: “It is way past time that PumpWatch has not been in operation.
“So, I am more than delighted that FairFuelUK’s decade of campaigning to see fairer, transparent, and honest pump pricing is nearing fruition.
“Years of lobbying the Government seems to have paid off. I am delighted that a PumpWatch consumer pricing watchdog will roll out with teeth to protect the UK’s millions of hard-pressed drivers from perennial profiteering by the fuel supply chain at the pumps.”
Last year, Leader of the House Penny Mordaunt, had backed the idea of a PumpWatch scheme and stated that the Government was working on introducing such a scheme.
Commenting on the new measures, RAC spokesperson Simon Williams, said it would provide much-needed relief for drivers who have been dealing with unfair fuel prices.
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A fuel price checker is already being used in Northern Ireland
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He added: “Sadly, there have been far too many occasions where drivers have lost out at the pumps when wholesale prices have fallen significantly and those reductions haven’t been passed on quickly enough or fully enough by retailers.
“We badly need to see competition in the wider market match that of Northern Ireland where fuel prices are consistently 5p cheaper.”
