Warning to everyone buying petrol at Asda instead of Tesco, Morrisons or Sainsbury’s
Drivers buying petrol from Asda instead of Tesco, Morrisons or Sainsbury’s have been issued a warning.
Supermarket giant Asda has now become the most expensive fuel retailer in the UK, new analysis from breakdown experts the RAC has revealed.
Rivals Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s all sold a litre of petrol for an average of 2.1p less than Asda by the end of May, according to the analysis.
It was even worse for diesel, with a 2.5p gulf between Asda’s prices and the other supermarkets.
The RAC said that for many years Asda “prided itself on selling the cheapest fuel”, often being the first supermarket to cut pump prices. But the supermarket was taken over by billionaires the Issa brothers in 2021 along with private equity firm TDR Capital.
And when Asda bought the UK arm of petrol station giant EG Group – owned by the Issa brothers – in May last year, Mohsin Issa said the deal would enable him to offer “Asda’s highly competitive fuel” to more customers.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) published a report in July last year stating that Asda’s target fuel margin – the difference between what it paid for fuel and the pump price – was three times higher for 2023 compared with 2019.
The RAC’s analysis found that across all UK forecourts, the average price of petrol fell by 2.4p per litre last month to 147.9.
Diesel prices dipped by 4.5p per litre to 153.6p.
A new law was put in place by the CMA this month which will allow the government to more closely monitor and report fuel pricing issues and potentially take action on margins at the pumps in future.
RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis said pump prices should be falling much faster to reflect a decline in wholesale costs.
He said: “A month of decreasing fuel prices should be seen as a good one for drivers but the sheer time it is taking for any meaningful price reductions to reach forecourts is if anything a continuing cause of concern.
“When it comes to much-needed pump price cuts, it’s sadly a case of too little too leisurely, with most drivers still getting a miserable deal every time they fill up.
“We’re once again in classic ‘rocket and feather’ territory, with pump prices only trickling down when they should really be falling like a stone.
“It’s also interesting to see that Asda no longer holds the crown for selling the cheapest fuel despite the pledge made when it was subject to a merger a year ago.
“The other three major supermarkets, as well as some enterprising independents, now offer lower prices.”
