THE COST OF running a family car has risen by more than 5 per cent in the past year, with costs primarily pushed up by increased fuel prices.

The AA’s annual survey of motoring costs has found that the cost of running a family car rose 5.8 per cent between June 2010 and June 2011.

AA Director of Policy Conor Faughnan advised people to keep shopping around for their car insurance because it is “one of the biggest bills that motorists pay, but there are ways of getting it down.”

Insurance and maintenance costs rose slightly over that period, but fuel rose 12 per cent from 133.3 cents a litre to 151.7 cents.

Although the survey focused on petrol cars rather than diesel, the dominance of petrol cars on Irish roads is expected to change given the surge in demand for diesel vehicles. So far this year, over 70 per cent of new car sales are for diesel models, the AA says.

There was some good news for motorists this morning though, as fuel prices fell following the recent downgrading of the US credit rating.

Bloomberg reports that Brent crude oil fell by 2.9 per cent, before coming back slightly. According to the AP, oil prices fell below $85 a barrel during trading in Asia this morning.

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