# General > General >  Beware fuel rip-off!!

## Crackeday

Its seems Tescos and Dunnets have no petrol!! So i went to richards and was disgusted to find they are charging 127 per litre for petrol!!!
Obviously they have realised that there is no other petrol in Wick at the moment so have put their prices up. This is scandalous and is 7p more than tesco and 3p more than dunnets. Luckily I seen the price at the pump and pulled away. This is a shocking way to treat the already hard up motorist, shame on them. ::  Beware

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## Mr P Cannop

> Its seems Tescos and Dunnets have no petrol!! So i went to richards and was disgusted to find they are charging 127 per litre for petrol!!!
> Obviously they have realised that there is no other petrol in Wick at the moment so have put their prices up. This is scandalous and is 7p more than tesco and 3p more than dunnets. Luckily I seen the price at the pump and pulled away. This is a shocking way to treat the already hard up motorist, shame on them. Beware


The SNP if they get in  will drive down the price on this

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## Crackeday

> The SNP if they get in  will drive down the price on this


I'll believe that when I see it!!!!! ::

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## bekisman

Just got in - been down to Inverness and filled up at Tesco's at 84.9p a litre, whilst in Thurso it's still 100.p - the Rip-off continues. Whoops, just realised I posted this here on the Org  11th September 2006! - nothing changes.. 
Tesco, Wick needs it's bum kicked, as it would become pretty obvious that the 'other' fuel outlet's greed would come to the surface, if their stocks dwindled.. 

But suppose when Tesco in Thurso gets its arse into gear AND keeps their tanks full, we will have a chance to thank Dunnets et al for their consideration.. :Frown:

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## upolian

I thought petrol was £1.21.£1.22 there?did it go up over night  ::

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## Mr P Cannop

> I'll believe that when I see it!!!!!


they will try if everyone votes for them next thursday come on lets all vote for SNP if you all want the fuel to go down in price

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## Lavenderblue2

> The SNP if they get in will drive down the price on this


 ::   Now Paul, this isn't the 'jokes page'.... ::

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## Crackeday

> I thought petrol was £1.21.£1.22 there?did it go up over night


Think so this was at 10am this morning, pulled up seen the price (Because they never advertise it)Pulled away pronto!!

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## Crackeday

> they will try if everyone votes for them next thursday come on lets all vote for SNP if you all want the fuel to go down in price


Its obvious who your voting for then!!!!! Wont mention my preference as this is about petrol price not Who your voting for!! ::

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## bish667

> Its seems Tescos and Dunnets have no petrol!! So i went to richards and was disgusted to find they are charging 127 per litre for petrol!!!
> Obviously they have realised that there is no other petrol in Wick at the moment so have put their prices up. This is scandalous and is 7p more than tesco and 3p more than dunnets. Luckily I seen the price at the pump and pulled away. This is a shocking way to treat the already hard up motorist, shame on them. Beware


 
Lucky you dont buy petrol in Thurso as that is the price Unleaded has been for a while now. i've been paying 126.9 for weeks, maybe longer.

I do buy super but the price of Unleaded where i buy from appears to be the same price.

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## dafi

All sounds very cheap to me. My local pumps are charging 131.9.

I might have to come over the firth to fill up soon...lol

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## Billy Boy

> they will try if everyone votes for them next thursday come on lets all vote for SNP if you all want the fuel to go down in price


I would rather vote for Gorden Campbell  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## Fran

Unbelievable, the only place with petrol in wick was closed before 8.30pm when i and a few others got there. richards garage is the only place with petrol, you would think they would stay open for all the motorists. Don't know what I will do now as have to be in thurso early tomorrow.
Plenty of fuel at John o Groats, maybe i'll go there first thing, just have enough fuel to get there.

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## bekisman

Does anyone have any (serious) idea why this situation has arisen, when there is no fuel?

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## equusdriving

They probably feel they can afford to close early due to the vastly inflated prices as  they would have been busier today than they have ever been because motorists have no option but to pay their high prices

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## Boozeburglar

> Its seems Tescos and Dunnets have no petrol!! So i went to richards and was disgusted to find they are charging 127 per litre for petrol!!!
> Obviously they have realised that there is no other petrol in Wick at the moment so have put their prices up. This is scandalous and is 7p more than tesco and 3p more than dunnets. Luckily I seen the price at the pump and pulled away. This is a shocking way to treat the already hard up motorist, shame on them. Beware


Why should they not adjust their price according to demand?

Tesco are trying to put everyone else out of business, and they will leave if they cannot keep hammering their suppliers to let them make hay.

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## Stack Rock

> Unbelievable, the only place with petrol in wick was closed before 8.30pm when i and a few others got there. richards garage is the only place with petrol, you would think they would stay open for all the motorists. Don't know what I will do now as have to be in thurso early tomorrow.
> Plenty of fuel at John o Groats, maybe i'll go there first thing, just have enough fuel to get there.


Why not try the pumps at Watten. Also Richards open early but maybe not early enough for your departure.

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## horseman

I was moaning to my wife this morning coz' Morrisons were up to 119 for petrol. :Frown:

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## Swannie

I bought diesel at JG Sutherland's today.  It is 127.9 per litre.  Later on when on way back from Inverness bought diesel at Morrisons Alness for 121.9 per litre.  It was 123.9 at Kildary and 128.9 in Brora.

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## stef06

i need petrol anyone know where between reay and thurso have any ive only got enuf to get one way so wont beable to go out if i cany get any? silly me didnt realise their was a shortage until all the garages were closed n i need to get shopping and work :s

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## Crackeday

> Why should they not adjust their price according to demand?
> 
> Tesco are trying to put everyone else out of business, and they will leave if they cannot keep hammering their suppliers to let them make hay.


Theres adjusting your price to meet demand and then plain  greed.
All tesco do is drive the price DOWN. If tesco wasnt here we would have been paying these inflated prices for months, its because of Tesco that its been cheap. Whatever peoples views on tesco at least its kept our fuel at a reasonable level(until now)
Alot of people have long memories and will remember that they(Richards) have increased their price when there was a fuel shortage, maybe the next time someone needs a quick repair on their car they'll remember this and go elsewhere?

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## MR_A

> Theres adjusting your price to meet demand and then plain  greed.
> All tesco do is drive the price DOWN. If tesco wasnt here we would have been paying these inflated prices for months, its because of Tesco that its been cheap. Whatever peoples views on tesco at least its kept our fuel at a reasonable level(until now)
> Alot of people have long memories and will remember that they(Richards) have increased their price when there was a fuel shortage, maybe the next time someone needs a quick repair on their car they'll remember this and go elsewhere?



I agree, I don't care if Tesco are taking over the world I'm all for cheapness. It's about time the fuel sharks got their comeuppance they have been taking the eyes out of us motorists up here for years.

Thing is if/when they go bust or have to close as cannot compete they have nobody to blame but themselves. 

No doubt there will be the few that say "It's such a shame blah blah blah" but really its their own fault they have been taking the pee for years.

I for one always use Tesco for fuel for that very matter and would rather take the bus than pay the inflated prices of greed such as coming from Richards.

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## Even Chance

I try NOT to use Tesco for fuel.
 I'd rather see the money going to someone local, plus Tesco fuel is cheaper as it doesnt have the same additives as the big name brands. I'd rather put better quality fuel through my car personally. Ive seen cars stutter and cough after running nothing but Tesco petrol for years, then run MUCH better after being told to run big name brand fuel.

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## ducati

> I try NOT to use Tesco for fuel.
> I'd rather see the money going to someone local, plus Tesco fuel is cheaper as it doesnt have the same additives as the big name brands. I'd rather put better quality fuel through my car personally. Ive seen cars stutter and cough after running nothing but Tesco petrol for years, then run MUCH better after being told to run big name brand fuel.


You've been wasting your money

http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/what...fferent/215240

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## Even Chance

Nope, didnt you read the part about giving my money to LOCAL business. I certainly dont waste my money if its going back into the local economy.
 I am an Engineer, and have seen the results for myself. This backs up my personal belief about Tesco fuel, not one article.

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## ducati

> Nope, didnt you read the part about giving my money to LOCAL business. I certainly dont waste my money if its going back into the local economy.
> I am an Engineer, and have seen the results for myself. This backs up my personal belief about Tesco fuel, not one article.


And it is yours to waste  ::

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## bish667

I would love to use Tesco but they dont supply Super Unleaded up here  :Frown:

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## annthracks

> The SNP if they get in  will drive down the price on this


stop talking out of your ears (anag.) they'll be just as greedy for TAXES as the next gibbermint

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## Boozeburglar

I think it is a fair assumption that the SNP do more for the rural economy of the Highlands. By the way, they ARE 'in'.

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## northener

The subject of 'Far North Ripoff Fuel Prices' comes lurching out of it's grave every few months on here.

Can anyone who is convinced that we are being charged a huge difference to the rest of the UK explain why every time I go to Engerlund I see prices on par overall with what we're paying?

I took a bloke from Wetherby in Yorkshire down to Glasgow on Monday, his comment regarding fuel prices in Caithness was "That's about the same as we pay in Wetherby"........

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## annthracks

> I try NOT to use Tesco for fuel.
>  I'd rather see the money going to someone local, plus Tesco fuel is cheaper as it doesnt have the same additives as the big name brands. I'd rather put better quality fuel through my car personally. Ive seen cars stutter and cough after running nothing but Tesco petrol for years, then run MUCH better after being told to run big name brand fuel.


I'm sorry, but if you believe that, you deserve to get ripped off. 
The only time I now use a big brand is when I want to put a tankful of Ultimate through the engine. Even when I worked for bp and got 1p a litre discount on my fuel card (WOW!), I used to fill up at Morrisons because it was STILL cheaper, and it was still the same petrol!

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## northener

> ......., plus Tesco fuel is cheaper as it doesnt have the same additives as the big name brands. I'd rather put better quality fuel through my car personally......


Then you've been misled by (presumably) someone who sells petrol in competition to the supermarkets.

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## ducati

> Nope, didnt you read the part about giving my money to LOCAL business. I certainly dont waste my money if its going back into the local economy.
> I am an Engineer, and have seen the results for myself. This backs up my personal belief about Tesco fuel, not one article.


As for local business, what is Tesco? They employ 20 times more people than all the local garages combined.

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## onecalledk

have to agree with those stating that Tesco fuel is not as good as branded fuel. Tesco DO NOT add anything to their fuel, no additives.  The fuel lasts LONGER with additives. 

I get more miles out of my car using a branded fuel than a tesco fill up.  Why do you think tesco are so cheap? they choose not to add the additives (!) thereby it reducing the cost to themselves ........ 

K

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## Geo

> Nope, didnt you read the part about giving my money to LOCAL business. I certainly dont waste my money if its going back into the local economy.
>  I am an Engineer, and have seen the results for myself. This backs up my personal belief about Tesco fuel, not one article.


So what about the millions of people who don't have a problem with supermarket fuel?  If non supermarket fuel was so much better would the garages selling it not be singing it from the rafters?

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## Even Chance

Hi all, 
 I dinna want till get intil an argument, ats no what I said it for. Its just my personal belief as I said afore. I ken I might be wrong, and fully accept that fact.
 I DO use tesco fuel, but certainly no e' whole time, and only if Im pasing anyway.
I hope you all get what I mean, and certainly no offence meant to anyone.

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## espadartecars

*i bought petrol from richards garage in thurso lastnight and it was £1.28 a litre,the man commented on how busy he had been that evening,so i take from that they are usually quiet,little wonder when they charge prices like that.*

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## Geo

> Hi all, 
>  I dinna want till get intil an argument, ats no what I said it for. Its just my personal belief as I said afore. I ken I might be wrong, and fully accept that fact.
>  I DO use tesco fuel, but certainly no e' whole time, and only if Im pasing anyway.
> I hope you all get what I mean, and certainly no offence meant to anyone.


I know what you mean and I can't see how anyone could take offense from what you said.  

I mainly use Tesco for fuel but do use the local garages when they are close to the Tesco price.  A penny difference wouldn't bother me but when it's up to 5p/l difference I vote with my er wheels.  :Smile:

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## Invisible

> Its seems Tescos and Dunnets have no petrol!! So i went to richards and was disgusted to find they are charging 127 per litre for petrol!!!
> Obviously they have realised that there is no other petrol in Wick at the moment so have put their prices up. This is scandalous and is 7p more than tesco and 3p more than dunnets. Luckily I seen the price at the pump and pulled away. This is a shocking way to treat the already hard up motorist, shame on them. Beware


at the end of the day Mr Richards Garage wants to make his money out of others misfortune, you could say creating him a small fortune.
After all It's business. Dog eat dog, cat eat cat, that cat served in Chinese.

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## Dusty

Motor vehicle fuels are produced to British and European standards for the purposes of production quality control and custody transfer quantity control (HM Revenue and Customs). Standard testing methods are required to be used by producers to allow them to trade their product nationally and internationally.

The relevent standard are:-
European/ British Automotive Fuel Specifications for Diesel Fuel, BS EN 590 
European/ British Automotive Fuel Specifications for Unleaded Petrol, BS EN 228 
European/ British Automotive Fuel Specifications for LPG, BS EN 589 
British Specification for High Octane (Super) Unleaded Petrol, BS 7800 
British Specification for Leaded Petrol, BS 4040

The fuels produced in the UK or "Europe" are identical and tested to confirm that this is so.

Some fuels contain additives which are combined with the fuel at the time of loading into a railcar or road tanker and these are claimed to increase mileage by reducing friction, cleaning the engine, reducing pinking or producing a more even fuel burn in the cylinder.

It's basically all the same stuff, although if it has been in storage for a long, long time it can go "off" slightly and not be as effective as it once was but I suspect that you would need to be running a very fussy machine to notice the difference.

Having said that, some years ago, I ran a Toyota Celica and used the Shell fuel which claimed to clean your engine and increase your mileage.
Vauxhall cars seemed to suffer burnt pistons when using this fuel but I swore that I was getting better mileage using it.

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## Crackeday

To be honest I normally find that if I go to dunnets the fuel lasts longer. I admit sometimes my car seems to idle a wee bit different with tesco but its very minor. 
Id rather give to local business' as long as they dont try and rip the eyes out of you while supporting them!!! :: 
At least with Dunnets and Tesco you can see the price before you enter the garage and not a price written on a blackboard that has been mysteriously wiped off by all the rain!!!(Yes i know the price is on the pump but if theres a queue and you get in position you'd feel obliged to buy fuel?)

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## captain chaos

Fuel station prices for Diesel around Thurso


127.9p	Mackays Garage Castletown

125.9p	Dunnets Thurso
last updated on 28 April

125.9p	Richards Garage
last updated on 28 April

127.9p	Bridgend Filling Station
last updated on 28 April

127.9p	Pennyland Service Station
last updated on 28 April


Fuel station prices for Diesel around Wick

Tesco  	               Tesco Wick  	Wick  	             120.9p	           
Esso 	               Dunnets Wick 	Wick 		123.9p	              
Unbranded 	  Richards Garage 	Wick 		124p	
Gleaner 	               Allan's Of Gillock 	Wick 		125p

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## onecalledk

www.petrolprices.com

if you sign up with this website they can email you daily or weekly with the petrol stations around your postcode area.  This covers the whole of britain.

Very handy but a bit shocking to get emails telling you that petrol is 120.9p in Inverness after you have paid 126.9p in Thurso ! 

K

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## Billy Boy

[QUOTE=onecalledk

Very handy but a bit shocking to get emails telling you that petrol is 120.9p in Inverness after you have paid 126.9p in Thurso ! 
 [/QUOTE]

Thats not bad! Considering not so long ago Inverness was always a minimum 10p a litre cheaper

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## baldeagle

anybody know when the garages will be back to there normal fuel service.

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## adi1

Just to put things straight and not to add fuel to the fire so to speak!
If you fill your car at Tesco be aware that it IS a poorer quality petrol/diesel with no additives added.
Remember the contaminated fuel fiasco back in 2007? Yes that was Tesco.
As for Richards garage today I paid 124.9 a litre for Unleaded and they are always a penny or so cheaper than the other forecourts in Thurso.
So its the people's choice think your getting a bargain your probably not.

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## Tubthumper

> If you fill your car at Tesco be aware that it IS a poorer quality petrol/diesel with no additives added.
> Remember the contaminated fuel fiasco back in 2007? Yes that was Tesco.


It comes from the same tanks, it meets the same standards, you must be a garage owner. Where's your parrot and crutch?
You know a lot about it - tell us where the contaminated Tesco fuel came from? Also, would you mind giving us a heads-up on the other contaminated fuel episodes that have happened in the UK in the last 5 years? I know about them, and so do ****. They  paid a lot to make sure it didnt get in the news actually.  :Grin:

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## adi1

> It comes from the same tanks, it meets the same standards, you must be a garage owner. Where's your parrot and crutch?
> You know a lot about it - tell us where the contaminated Tesco fuel came from? Also, would you mind giving us a heads-up on the other contaminated fuel episodes that have happened in the UK in the last 5 years? I know about them, and so do ****. They  paid a lot to make sure it didnt get in the news actually.


The contaminated fuel came Greenergy who one the whole supply Tesco and Morrisons.
I don't know of any other issues of contaminated fuel and I don"t know how any company could pay to keep consumer issues out of the news.
As for being a garage owner the only garage I have is on the side of the house and the only petrol in the garage is in the lawn mower.
All I do know is that local garages are getting a rough deal off alot of people who think the garage owners dictate the price on the forecourt. The suppliers dictate the price along with other less desirables.
It all comes down to choice pay a few pence a litre less get your clubcard points.Or get more MPG and less wear and tear on your engine.

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## ducati

> The contaminated fuel came Greenergy who one the whole supply Tesco and Morrisons.
> I don't know of any other issues of contaminated fuel and I don"t know how any company could pay to keep consumer issues out of the news.
> As for being a garage owner the only garage I have is on the side of the house and the only petrol in the garage is in the lawn mower.
> All I do know is that local garages are getting a rough deal off alot of people who think the garage owners dictate the price on the forecourt. The suppliers dictate the price along with other less desirables.
> It all comes down to choice pay a few pence a litre less get your clubcard points.Or get more MPG and less wear and tear on your engine.


I get 43 mile to the gallon on a run with tesco petrol. Exactly what it says in the book ::

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## adi1

> I get 43 mile to the gallon on a run with tesco petrol. Exactly what it says in the book


Maybe you should read this 
http://www.usedcarexpert.co.uk/article.aspx?KB_ID=1005

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## Geo

http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/what...fferent/215240

For every link saying it's poorer quality there is one saying it's the same.

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## Crackeday

At the end of the day fuel is fuel! Its the exact same if you buy supermarket meat or Butcher meat,its basically the same product just from a different animal and at the end of the day you get the same results and emissions!!!! :: 
(You dont need a link for that one :: )

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## ducati

> Maybe you should read this 
> http://www.usedcarexpert.co.uk/article.aspx?KB_ID=1005


This does explain the additive business a lot better. :Grin: 

Although, I used to have a TR6 with a Lucas mechanical fuel injection. The lead in old petrol used to lubricate the system and if you converted the engine to run on unleaded and used premium petrol, the fuel metering unit would sieze and be ruined. Many of us believed the petrol companies claims of the lubricating additives and at nearly £1000 for the repair it was an expensive mistake.

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## adi1

> At the end of the day fuel is fuel! Its the exact same if you buy supermarket meat or Butcher meat,its basically the same product just from a different animal and at the end of the day you get the same results and emissions!!!!
> (You dont need a link for that one)


What utter nonsense (don't need a link for that either)

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## carrepairman

I am not defending any fuel retailer with this offering.......

I had a garage and used to sell fuel, My markup was 2.4p per litre, so for say £10.00`s worth of fuel at say £1.00 per litre I would be 24p up on the deal. If that customer paid by credit card [and most did], The credit card company would take 1.4% of that £10.00 leaving me with 10p.
Out of that I have to pay the staff, Rates, Electricity, Credit card machine rental [£32.00 per month], Petrolium spirit licsense, Fire brigade inspection, Six monthly fire extinguisher maintainance, Fuel tank integrity tests, Bank charges, Insurance, etc. If a customer bought a tenners worth of fuel and a Mars bar, there was more profit on the Mars bar than the fuel.

Needless to say that selling fuel did not even cover the wages.

I worked it out that to break even I would need a markup of at least 7p a litre.

One drive off with say £50.00 worth would need me to sell 5000 litres to make up for it.
This is why there are more and more fuel stations closing, The oil companies get richer, Most of fuel station owners become poorer.

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## adi1

> I am not defending any fuel retailer with this offering.......
> 
> I had a garage and used to sell fuel, My markup was 2.4p per litre, so for say £10.00`s worth of fuel at say £1.00 per litre I would be 24p up on the deal. If that customer paid by credit card [and most did], The credit card company would take 1.4% of that £10.00 leaving me with 10p.
> Out of that I have to pay the staff, Rates, Electricity, Credit card machine rental [£32.00 per month], Petrolium spirit licsense, Fire brigade inspection, Six monthly fire extinguisher maintainance, Fuel tank integrity tests, Bank charges, Insurance, etc. If a customer bought a tenners worth of fuel and a Mars bar, there was more profit on the Mars bar than the fuel.
> 
> Needless to say that selling fuel did not even cover the wages.
> 
> I worked it out that to break even I would need a markup of at least 7p a litre.
> 
> ...


Well put carrepairman
Most people think that garage owners are hiking up the prices of fuel.
And after you have said all of that people still won't believe it.

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## Tubthumper

> Well put carrepairman
> Most people think that garage owners are hiking up the prices of fuel.
> And after you have said all of that people still won't believe it.


Yes, well put. But someone somewhere is hiking up the prices, or based on what you're telling us all the garages in Wick would have closed their doors long ago.
Is it the distributors? The truck drivers? the supply company? Where does the difference between here & Inverness go to? It doesn't cost 5p per litre per tanker load to drive a truck up here and back.
By the way, how much per litre do the marketing ploy additives cost? And where are they added?

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## fred

> Yes, well put. But someone somewhere is hiking up the prices, or based on what you're telling us all the garages in Wick would have closed their doors long ago.


The filling station at Dunbeath closed, the filling station at Latheron closed, the filling station at Lybster closed, the filling station at Thrumster closed, the filling station at Helmsdale closed. 

Every filling station from Brora to Wick was just making so much money they couldn't spend it fast enough so they had to close down.

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## adi1

> The filling station at Dunbeath closed, the filling station at Latheron closed, the filling station at Lybster closed, the filling station at Thrumster closed, the filling station at Helmsdale closed. 
> 
> Every filling station from Brora to Wick was just making so much money they couldn't spend it fast enough so they had to close down.


The suppliers dictate the price, in a area of supermarket competition they supply the local forecourt's at a discounted price.
Hence in area with 2 or more supermarkets selling fuel eg. Inverness the price of fuel is cheaper than Caithness

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## pentlander

> I am not defending any fuel retailer with this offering.......
> 
> I had a garage and used to sell fuel, My markup was 2.4p per litre, so for say £10.00`s worth of fuel at say £1.00 per litre I would be 24p up on the deal. If that customer paid by credit card [and most did], The credit card company would take 1.4% of that £10.00 leaving me with 10p.
> Out of that I have to pay the staff, Rates, Electricity, Credit card machine rental [£32.00 per month], Petrolium spirit licsense, Fire brigade inspection, Six monthly fire extinguisher maintainance, Fuel tank integrity tests, Bank charges, Insurance, etc. If a customer bought a tenners worth of fuel and a Mars bar, there was more profit on the Mars bar than the fuel.
> 
> Needless to say that selling fuel did not even cover the wages.
> 
> I worked it out that to break even I would need a markup of at least 7p a litre.
> 
> ...


Good post.

It must also be remembered that the supermarkets often use fuel as a loss leader to get customers to do the big shop at their particular store.
Making profit on the fuel does not matter as they get enough from us on the regular groceries we buy.
The small guy needs to make on his petrol as save for a few fags thats all he sells

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## fred

> The suppliers dictate the price, in a area of supermarket competition they supply the local forecourt's at a discounted price.
> Hence in area with 2 or more supermarkets selling fuel eg. Inverness the price of fuel is cheaper than Caithness


And if your supplier is your landlord and they insist you take agency cards you have to sell the petrol for less than you pay for it.

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## carrepairman

One of the other scams that goes on is when there is an increase in fuel duty eg: The duty on fuel will go up by 2p a litre from March the first, On that day the price you pay at the pump carries the extra duty, but the duty is charged at the refinery gate so all the fuel you have in stock is duty paid, so if you have 30000 litres in your underground tanks then it`s anice little earner for the garage.

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## annthracks

> And if your supplier is your landlord and they insist you take agency cards you have to sell the petrol for less than you pay for it.


I thought that was illegal!  Smacks of Victorian workers being paid in factory tokens, and only being able to buy goods from factory shop...

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## pentlander

> One of the other scams that goes on is when there is an increase in fuel duty eg: The duty on fuel will go up by 2p a litre from March the first, On that day the price you pay at the pump carries the extra duty, but the duty is charged at the refinery gate so all the fuel you have in stock is duty paid, so if you have 30000 litres in your underground tanks then it`s anice little earner for the garage.


I can tell you now that garages have very little in their tanks after budget day.
Check out the queues before the duty rise comes in.

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## fred

> I thought that was illegal!  Smacks of Victorian workers being paid in factory tokens, and only being able to buy goods from factory shop...


I don't think there are too many laws regulating franchising in Britain, the filling station manager is self employed not a worker, he just signs a contract to abide by his supplier's rules. People with agency cards pay the same fixed rate for their petrol anywhere in Britain.

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## ducati

Just a further thought re quality, we all now know that petrol has volatile additives. I would be happier buying from a high turnover station (that would be Tescos) as I fear it may stay in the tanks too long at a smaller station.  ::

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## georgegwf

The goverment tax is why the price is so high, not the garages. How much duty do you pay on a tank of fuel 86 pence a litre thats how much. It is a disgrace  ::

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## Dog-eared

Ducati
I thought Tesco kept their prices down by not including additives.
And I know about volatle additives - my lawnmower wont start with last years fuel !

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## brandy

runs around screaming and tearing her hair... its a conspiracy a conspiracy i tell you.. they are opressing us with their high fuel taxes and evil ways... its the man.. its the man.. the end is nigh the end is nigh.. wheres the chippie oil when you need it.. all hail the chippie oil!!

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## ducati

> Ducati
> I thought Tesco kept their prices down by not including additives.
> And I know about volatle additives - my lawnmower wont start with last years fuel !


You have to have some additives to make the Octane rating, these boil off over time. That's why your Lawnmower won't start. :Frown: 

Another thing of minor interest, Unleaded is more combustable than 4 star was. We found this when, as Marshals, we faced considerably more fires at race meetings when unleaded came into common use for motorcycle racing. ::

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## bekisman

Hey Ducati - thought might have see you there?  :Wink: 

About 400 bikers travelled at 25mph from Hartshead Moor Services in West Yorkshire to Manchester city centre in the "May-Hem" protest. Police said other motorist faced delays as slow moving traffic was reported along the route on Saturday morning, but any disruption was minimised. The convoy arrived in Manchester at about 1130 BST. 
Some heavy traffic was reported around Regent Road as police directed the bikers through the city centre, but no major problems were reported. 
Protests in the last two years have seen hundreds of bikers take over motorways by travelling slowly and in convoy. 
Organisers on biker websites say the general election campaign is an opportunity to show the "political elite" they want a cut in fuel duty. 
The AA's monthly fuel price report for April says petrol prices have reached a new record high, having broken the previous record of 119.7p a litre set in July 2008. Rising wholesale costs, a 1p increase in fuel duty on 1 April and a higher price for oil continue to push pump prices up by one to two-tenths of a penny a day, the organisation said, with the UK having the eleventh highest unleaded price in Europe and the second highest diesel price. 




http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/m...er/8655686.stm

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## ~~Tides~~

> I had a garage and used to sell fuel, My markup was 2.4p per litre, so for say £10.00`s worth of fuel at say £1.00 per litre I would be 24p up on the deal. If that customer paid by credit card [and most did], The credit card company would take 1.4% of that £10.00 leaving me with 10p.
> Out of that I have to pay the staff, Rates, Electricity, Credit card machine rental [£32.00 per month], Petrolium spirit licsense, Fire brigade inspection, Six monthly fire extinguisher maintainance, Fuel tank integrity tests, Bank charges, Insurance, etc. If a customer bought a tenners worth of fuel and a Mars bar, there was more profit on the Mars bar than the fuel.
> 
> Needless to say that selling fuel did not even cover the wages.
> 
> I worked it out that to break even I would need a markup of at least 7p a litre.
> 
> One drive off with say £50.00 worth would need me to sell 5000 litres to make up for it.
> This is why there are more and more fuel stations closing, The oil companies get richer, Most of fuel station owners become poorer.



This is exactly the case. I've tried to argue this before but it is futile. The fact is that independent fuel retailers in Caithness are not making any money. But nobody wants to believe this.
If they were making such killings then why have all the stand-alone petrol stations in Caithness closed?
The markup that independent retailers get is rarely more than three pence per litre (where agency cards are used, this is as little 1 pence per litre) and then a huge bite is taken out of that by the credit card company and the rest go on the overheads. Tesco's retail price is cheaper than the wholesale price that independents are forced (contracted) to accept.
It is just not a viable business and consumers are naturally going to go to the place that is cheapest, and that is why independent fuel stations, all over rural UK not just the Highlands, are closing.

As I said, I've tried to explain this before but people just don't want to believe it, if they want to believe that small independent businesses are making a killing then there is nothing else I can say.

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## ducati

> Hey Ducati - thought might have see you there? 
> 
> About 400 bikers travelled at 25mph from Hartshead Moor Services in West Yorkshire to Manchester city centre in the "May-Hem" protest. Police said other motorist faced delays as slow moving traffic was reported along the route on Saturday morning, but any disruption was minimised. The convoy arrived in Manchester at about 1130 BST. 
> Some heavy traffic was reported around Regent Road as police directed the bikers through the city centre, but no major problems were reported. 
> Protests in the last two years have seen hundreds of bikers take over motorways by travelling slowly and in convoy. 
> Organisers on biker websites say the general election campaign is an opportunity to show the "political elite" they want a cut in fuel duty. 
> The AA's monthly fuel price report for April says petrol prices have reached a new record high, having broken the previous record of 119.7p a litre set in July 2008. Rising wholesale costs, a 1p increase in fuel duty on 1 April and a higher price for oil continue to push pump prices up by one to two-tenths of a penny a day, the organisation said, with the UK having the eleventh highest unleaded price in Europe and the second highest diesel price. 
> 
> 
> ...


Blimey no. Bikers are unpopular enough as it is, I'm not much of a 'joiner in' either  ::

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## ducati

> This is exactly the case. I've tried to argue this before but it is futile. The fact is that independent fuel retailers in Caithness are not making any money. But nobody wants to believe this.
> If they were making such killings then why have all the stand-alone petrol stations in Caithness closed?
> The markup that independent retailers get is rarely more than three pence per litre (where agency cards are used, this is as little 1 pence per litre) and then a huge bite is taken out of that by the credit card company and the rest go on the overheads. Tesco's retail price is cheaper than the wholesale price that independents are forced (contracted) to accept.
> It is just not a viable business and consumers are naturally going to go to the place that is cheapest, and that is why independent fuel stations, all over rural UK not just the Highlands, are closing.
> 
> As I said, I've tried to explain this before but people just don't want to believe it, if they want to believe that small independent businesses are making a killing then there is nothing else I can say.


I believe you. I can't see how anyone makes money out of it. But why continue to flog a dead horse with a business that doesn't make money.
Unless your name is RBS or BA  ::

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## annthracks

> Just to put things straight and not to add fuel to the fire so to speak!
> If you fill your car at Tesco be aware that it IS a poorer quality petrol/diesel with no additives added.
> Remember the contaminated fuel fiasco back in 2007? Yes that was Tesco.


..... *AND* Morrisons *AND* ASDA  so, no, you're not adding fuel to anybody's fire, you're just painting Tesco in a bad light by withholding/misrepresenting all the facts. :-)

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## series2A

There are only two suppliers of fuel now in the north of scotland, simpsons and scottish fuels who have been buying out other suppliers over the last couple of years, once they get their hands on simpsons (if ever?) there will no doubt be more dry stations and price hikes for those of us up here and not just petrol but heating oil.

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