AA warns of petrol price rises

The motoring giant says the price could jump by 6p per litre over the next month, though it stresses this is not certain.

An AA spokesman says: "There is a potential for a 6p per litre increase over the month but it is not guaranteed because the price has been volatile.

"The price has already started to creep up, largely due to rising oil prices, but other factors drive it as well."

This is a far cry from June, when a price-cutting war broke out between the major supermarkets.

A number of now-expired petrol promotions have also run over recent weeks which saw motorists able to get up to 50p off a litre, under a Tesco 'extreme couponing' offer where you had to combine multiple offers.

Oil up

But over the past two months the cost of Brent Crude oil, which influences the price we pay at the pumps, has jumped from about $90 a barrel in mid-June to more than $113 now.

At the year's peak in April, an average litre of petrol was 142.48p and 147.88p for diesel, according to the AA.

But the cuts in June saw prices dip to a typical 132.18p for petrol and 137.26p for diesel by the middle of July.

Latest figures from the AA show the average cost of a litre of unleaded has now crept up to 135.52p, while a typical litre of diesel is 140.45p.

To find the cheapest petrol in your area try the Petrolprices.com website. Also see our Cheap Petrol and Diesel guide for how to cut consumption.