Diesel TX4 taxi drivers spending over £2,500 a year MORE on fuel based on prices just 12-months ago
The soaring price of diesel is costing the UK’s taxi drivers THOUSANDS of pounds more in bills compared to prices just 12-months ago.
The month of May saw average diesel prices climb to new heights with a litre going up to £1.83, a hike of more than 5p which takes the cost of a complete tank above £100 for the first time ever. A full tank of petrol also hit the landmark cost of £95.
A litre of unleaded rose from £1.63 at the start of May to £1.74 by the close. This was less than a penny short of the all-time biggest rise recorded in March when a litre of petrol jumped by 11.61p.
In June 2021 the cost of diesel was just starting to rise and stood at £1.30 per litre. Fast forward 12-months and the cost per litre has rocketed by a shocking 53p per litre.
Cabbies driving the popular TX4 diesel vehicles and travel a modest 150-miles per shift could now be looking at increased fuel bills of nearly £3,500 per year should diesel fuel prices break through the £2 per litre barrier.
Back in June 2021 it would have cost a taxi driver £26.72 to run 150-miles in their black cab. Based on June 2022 prices that figure has rose to £37.61 per shift. That equates to cab drivers forking out an extra £218 EACH MONTH and £2,613 over the course of a year during a wider cost of living crisis.
RAC fuel spokesman, Simon Williams, said: “With drivers facing such a dire situation on the forecourts we badly need further intervention from the Chancellor as households and businesses surely can’t take much more financial pain in conjunction with the horrendous hikes in gas and electricity.
“Something needs to be done, whether that’s a further cut in duty from the current 53p charged on every litre bought at the pumps, or a reduction in VAT from 20%. Arguably, a duty cut would make a bigger difference to both businesses and individuals, but it also seems very unfair that the Treasury is benefitting to the tune of 30p a litre in VAT revenue from the record high prices – as it’s effectively a tax on a tax, applied on top of the wholesale fuel cost, duty, delivery and retailer margin. the challenges drivers are facing, a VAT cut would be instant and wouldn’t be swallowed up by fluctuations on the wholesale market.”
