Supermarkets offer fuel discounts as Govt hikes petrol duty

Yet supermarket Morrisons says it will delay the hike at its pumps until Sunday.

Sainsbury's (for two more weeks) and Tesco (for four more weeks) are giving out vouchers offering 5p off a litre of fuel when you spend £50 in-store. The vouchers are valid for two weeks from issue.

Despite the rising cost of fuel, it's still possible to make big savings on your motoring expenses (see the Cheap Petrol & Diesel guide).

In some cases, drivers can save up to 60% on their bills by driving more efficiently and looking for the best deals when filling up, such as the supermarket offers.

The duty increase comes as some fuel analysts were last week predicting further hikes last week due to rising oil prices (see the Fuel prices could soar MSE News story), though the price of oil has since fallen slightly.

Slash costs

Joint MoneySavingExpert.com/RAC research has found you could slash fuel bills by up to 60% by following some simple steps.

That equates to a £1,500 a year saving for a high-spending household that spends £2,500 a year on petrol or diesel.

Here are our tips:

• look for cheap petrol promotions, particularly in supermarkets. The Cheap Petrol & Diesel guide is updated when promotions are announced.

• use Petrolprices.com to find the cheapest local filling station.

• accelerate and brake gently.

• turn off the air conditioning.

• keep your car aerodynamic by ensuring it is clean and free of its roofrack, unless in use.

• keep tyres properly inflated.

• de-clutter your car to make it lighter.

Further reading/Key links

Drive down fuel costs: Cheap Petrol & Diesel Find cheap filling stations: PetrolPrices.com