Tesco overtook Asda as the retailer with the cheapest petrol prices on UK forecourts, with Sainsbury's not far behind, fuel data shows.
The supermarket giant boasted the lowest average unleaded petrol price, setting motorists back 142.7p per litre (ppl).
However, Sainsbury’s stocked the UK’s cheapest unleaded petrol, with sites in Wolverhampton and Dungannon in Northern Ireland both priced at 136.9ppl, based on RAC Fuel Watch’s data.
Rising petrol prices have sped up this year as wholesale prices of oil surged. In March, the average cost of petrol crept up by nearly a further 2p (1.86p), rising from 144.62ppl to 146.48ppl. Motorists can expect to pay £80.56 to fill up a 55-litre-tank vehicle, which marks a £1 hike from last month.
Asda slid down the rankings of the top four fuel retailers – the others being Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco – charging drivers an average of 145ppl.
Asda most expensive petrol and diesel provider
The retailer also has a 34.2p gap between its cheapest and most expensive fuel price, the largest range of all four supermarkets.
As well as the priciest petrol on the forecourts among supermarkets, it also has the dearest average diesel cost, standing at 153.7ppl. The picture was the same for the difference in expense, with 35.2p separating its cheapest and most expensive forecourt.
Meanwhile, the cheapest diesel can most likely be found on Sainsbury’s forecourts, with an average price of 151.7ppl, closely followed by Tesco’s 151.8ppl.
Diesel’s average price also hiked from 154.68ppl to 155.99ppl – a third consecutive month of price surges, which means it costs £85.79 to fill up a 55-litre tank, up from 72p in February.
CMA concerned by margins on petrol prices
One area of concern for the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the amount of profit in retailers’ pockets.
Indeed, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Asda recorded a 7.8% margin, which led to the watchdog calling for changes to the industry’s “weak competition”.
But, this month, the difference in the price of wholesale petrol and what retailers charge dipped to 8p per litre by the end of March, compared to 10.5p at the start.
Simon Williams, RAC fuel spokesperson, lamented “another month of misery at the pumps” as prices continue to head north.
‘Postcode lottery needs to end’
Williams said: “Sadly, Asda appears not to be the force it once was in fuel retailing. Gone are the days when it used to announce big headline-grabbing pump price cuts when wholesale prices fell, along with a promise at the time that drivers would never pay more than a certain low price at any of its forecourts.
“The data from the competition watchdog also highlights the wildly different prices BP and Shell charge at the forecourts they own and run. Worryingly, there is sometimes as much as 30p between their high and low prices.
“We badly need to see an end to this practice, as this postcode lottery is extremely unfair to drivers.”
Williams added: “On a more positive note, it’s good to see the average retailer margin on petrol come down from 10.5p per litre at the start of March to under 8p.
“While the cause is most likely to be the increase in the wholesale price of petrol, it could also be due to the CMA again raising concerns about higher retailer margins very publicly just last week.”
Unleaded petrol prices
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Source: RAC Fuel Data
Cheapest diesel prices
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Source: RAC Fuel Data
