AA IRELAND HAS severely criticised the current cost of petrol and diesel, saying that taxes had brought the price of both fuels to an “all-time record”.

The AA  said that a litre of petrol now costs 157.0 cent, up 2.1 cent since last month, and that the price of diesel is up by 1.3 cent per litre to an average price of 154.4.

The group calculated that a car travelling 12,000 miles per year at a fuel economy rate of 30 miles per gallon would use 150 litres of fuel per month. By those figures, petrol users face a monthly bill of €235.50, while diesel users must spend €231.60. That marks a rise in the monthly cost of running a vehicle monthly by €18.75 on February of last year for petrol users and up by €23.85 for diesel users (the average costs were 144.5 cent and 138.5 cent 12 months ago).

Director of Policy Conor Faughnan said that the cost of fuel was a ‘rip off’ because of the Government’s decision to “super-tax” fuels:

There is no doubt about the fact that we are being ripped off but the culprits are not the local garages. It is our own government and the policy of super-taxes on fuels.

This began under the last government in 2008 and has continued under the current government, which added another four cent per litre in the last Budget.

To help ease the pressure on motorists’ wallets, the AA has launched a new fuel card available to members which offers a 2 cent discount on the price of a litre of petrol and diesel at over 350 Topaz stations nationwide.

To help save fuel and money, the AA said customers should:

• Buy fuel in units of litres, not euros
• Shop around
• Drive smoothly and slowly; a harsh driving style burns more fuel
• Cut down on the use of heaters if possible – air conditioners can add up to 10 per cent to fuel usage
• Service the car if it needs it
• Check that the tyres are properly inflated – soft tyres add significantly to fuel consumption

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