Fuel prices Birmingham: when does AA expect cost of petrol and diesel to drop - average fuel price in the UK

The AA has made a surprising yet welcome addition that fuel prices in the UK will drop soon.

It’s been a tough couple of years financially for the UK, with the cost of living crisis and soaring costs plaguing the UK.

The rising cost of fuel has also been widely publicised, with the average price of diesel hitting almost £2 just mere weeks ago.

The price of petrol and diesel has also hit such a level that records have been broken this year, with a 55-litre tank costing just over £100 back at the start of June, with the RAC declaring it a ‘dark day for drivers’.

There was even a protest that took part in various parts of the UK, in retaliation to the rising prices.

Whilst it was deemed ‘unorganised’ it still made national headlines and caught the attention of the government, which was the aim.

When does the AA expect petrol and diesel prices to drop?

Luckily for UK drivers, the AA predicts that the price of petrol and diesel will drop fairly soon, at a time when millions are under financial strain.

The AA also claimed that the price of petrol had dropped by 2.8p a litre, knocking around £1.50 off the price of a full tank of fuel.

The trajectory of wholesale prices is also promising, and gives validity to the timeline the AA expects.

At the start of June, wholesale petrol peaked above £1 a litre, but fell below 80p as recently as last week,  indicating a fall of as much as 20p.

Luke Bosdet at the AA said: “Wholesale petrol’s trajectory, if sustained, would lead to savings from the record highs – providing the fuel trade is prepared to pass them on.

“So far this morning, even with oil rebounding, wholesale petrol remains below 80.5p a litre.”

What is the average price of petrol and diesel in the UK?

According to Confused.com, the average petrol price in the UK as of Thursday, 14 July is 189.8p per litre for petrol and 197.9p for diesel.

It is a slight decrease at the beginning of the month, where prices stood at 191.5p and 199.1p respectively.

This is cause for relief from drivers, with the trend in petrol and diesel prices being downward.

Why did fuel prices rise so much?

The Russian invasion of Ukraine did have a big impact on fuel prices, which were already rising at the time of the invasion, which occurred late in February.

Fuel prices went up sharply because the price for crude oil, which is used to make petrol and diesel, also rose.

Crude oil was cheaper at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, because nobody was in desperate need of it.

As we started to adjust to life post-Covid, with the world starting to return to life as we know it, the demand for energy increased, meaning the costs also rose.

The UK is slowly phasing out Russian oil, and EU leaders say they will block most Russian oil imports by the end of the year, with the United States doing the same.

This means demand for oil from other producers has increased on a smaller market, leading to higher prices.