MOTORISTS are battling the bowser, with the annual cost of filling the tank shooting up by an average of $140.
Perth continued to edge towards record fuel prices this week, with petrol stations jacking up prices to a whopping 167.9¢ a litre on Tuesday and Wednesday.
That’s a record for the year to date according to Fuel Watch, with drivers being slugged 24¢ a litre more than this time last year and only 4.1¢ a litre less than the all-time record for Perth’s most expensive daily fuel price, set in 2008 at 172¢ a litre.
Data compiled by the RAC reveals the average petrol price so far in 2018 is 144.1¢ a litre, costing a motorist with a medium-sized SUV travelling 12,000km a year almost $1300 on fuel – or $140 more than last year’s annual bill when fuel prices for the year were an average 128.5¢ a litre.
And it’s almost $250 more than in 2016, when the average fuel price was 116.4¢ a litre – a 24 per cent increase in fuel prices in just two years.
The RAC warned that if the average unleaded price for the year to date was to increase to highs reached this week, Perth motorists would be hit with a $350 increase in their bill compared with last year’s average.
Fuel Watch assistant manager Ben Derecki said prices would likely remain high in the short term but there could be good news ahead after a drop in the Singapore benchmark, which dictates Australian petrol prices.
“The Singapore benchmark for unleaded petrol has dropped slightly over the last day or two, but up until a week ago the price had been increasing. As benchmark price changes usually take a week or two to flow through to the Perth market it’s likely higher prices will be around for a little longer yet,” he said.
“It does all depend on what happens to the benchmark over the coming weeks though. International prices are highly volatile and very difficult to predict.”
RAC manager of vehicles and sustainability Alex Forrest said current prices were hurting many motorists.
“WA motorists should have access to fair and reasonable fuel pricing in a transparently competitive market,” he said.
He urged motorists to monitor Fuel Watch and avoid the weekly petrol price spikes by filling up on Mondays to minimise being gouged at the bowser.
Data from the Australian Automobile Association shows households typically spend about 14 per cent of their income on transport alone.
For every litre of fuel, about 41¢ is collected by the Federal Government in fuel excise, costing the average Australian $600 a year.
Extracted from PerthNow