Urgent investigation into 'staggering' petrol costs launched as average pump price hits record high

An "urgent" review into the rising cost of petrol has been launched by the competition watchdog after prices hit a record high, prompting concerns that the fuel duty cut implemented to lower costs has not been passed on to customers.

Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed on Monday, June 13, that the organisation would be reviewing prices after business and energy secretary Kwasi Kwarteng wrote to the CMA over the weekend calling for an urgent review. In his letter from June 11, Mr Kwarteng raised concerns that the 5p per litre cut in fuel duty brought into effect in March had not stopped prices from soaring, with some customers seeing higher prices in some towns compared to petrol costs in similar neighbouring towns.

He wrote: "The British people are rightly frustrated that the £5 billion package does not always appear to have been passed through to forecourt prices. There remains widespread concern about the pace of the increase in prices at the forecourt and, that prices may not fall as much or as fast as they rise. Drivers should be getting a fair deal for fuel across the UK."

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Mr Kwarteng also wrote to fuel retailers last month, on May 17, calling for them to do everything possible to ensure drivers were getting a fair deal, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the post-covid economy changes pushed prices up to "unprecedented levels".

At that time, average fuel costs were sitting at around 165.1p a litre for petrol and 179.7p for diesel. Since then, prices have soared even higher, hitting an all-time record of 185.0p for a litre of petrol on Sunday, June 12 - up 7.1p