Why fuel costs so much, and what other countries are doing about it.
Diesel is £2 a litre and petrol is close to £1.75. The cause is mostly outside the UK. But the response is not. Germany, Ireland and South Korea are cutting fuel tax right now. The UK has held its 5p cut, and has added nothing new since May.
Published 9 October 2026 · Fuel Finder UK team
Where prices are
At 8:41pm on Thursday 8 October 2026, across 8,383 forecourts, the UK average diesel price was 199.9p a litre. 2,756 forecourts charged £2 or more. Across 8,270 forecourts, unleaded averaged 174.8p.
The RAC put the average diesel price at 200.01p on 2 October, the first time it had passed £2. On 28 February, before the war with Iran began, it was 142.38p. That is 57.6p a litre more, or about £32 on a 55-litre fill. Read how many forecourts are over £2.
Why fuel is so expensive
- Oil is above $100. Brent crude reached $105 a barrel on 8 October, up nearly 5% in a day, after a dozen Iranian attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz between 28 September and 2 October. Before the war it was about $73.
- Diesel is short on its own. Russian diesel output is down almost 30% after Ukrainian strikes on its refineries, and refined fuel cargoes through the Gulf are running at about half their pre-war level. The UK imports nearly 55% of the diesel it uses, so it feels that directly.
- Retailer margins are high. The competition regulator, the CMA, found no evidence that retailers changed their pricing to take advantage of the crisis. But average margins were 11.2p a litre in June, above the 10.7p average of 2025, which it already called historically high. It is concerned that slow, passive pricing is keeping them there.
The G7 agreed on 2 October to release up to 100 million barrels of emergency oil, with diesel first. Read what that could mean at the pump.
What other governments are doing
| Country | What | How much | Until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | Cut in fuel tax | 14 cents a litre, about 17 cents with VAT | October to the end of 2026 |
| Ireland | Cuts in fuel excise, extended in the Budget on 6 October | Existing cuts kept in full | 28 February 2027, then phased out by 30 June 2027 |
| South Korea | Cut in fuel tax, extended on 18 September | 15% on petrol, 25% on diesel | End of November 2026 |
| United States | Off-road dyed diesel allowed on roads, federal tax on it deferred | Aimed at truckers | Rest of 2026 (order signed 5 October) |
Sources linked at the bottom of this page.
Not every country has kept going. Australia halved its fuel excise in April and ended the discount on 2 August. Italy's cut in diesel excise ended on 17 September, which the government called the last one.
And cuts do not always reach the pump in full. When Germany cut fuel tax earlier this year, the Ifo Institute found petrol drivers got the whole cut, but diesel drivers got only 12 cents of it on average.
What the UK has done
- Held the 5p cut. On 20 May the government cancelled the 1p duty rise due on 1 September. Duty stays at 52.95p a litre to the end of the year. Read what that saves you.
- Cut red diesel duty for farms and construction, and gave hauliers a 12-month road tax holiday worth up to £912 a lorry.
- Joined the G7 release of emergency oil stocks on 2 October.
- Made prices public. The Fuel Finder scheme forces every forecourt to report price changes within 30 minutes, and since 8 October those prices have been in Google Maps. Read what we found when we checked.
What it has not done
- No new help at the pump since May. Since then, diesel has passed £2 a litre.
- Duty is still due to go up. By 3p a litre on 1 January 2027 and 2p more on 1 March. With VAT, that is 6p a litre. Read what it adds to a tank.
- No VAT cut on fuel. VAT on household electricity in Great Britain was cut to zero from 1 October. VAT on fuel was not.
The Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, said on 30 September that "every possible measure is being looked at", and that the Budget will consider further measures. He also said "we don't have huge room for manoeuvre." The Budget is on 28 October. The RAC wants fuel duty cut further or VAT reduced in it.
For comparison: the UK's 5p cut is worth 6p a litre with VAT. Germany's new cut is 17 cents a litre.
What you can do now
- Start with the supermarkets. At 8:41pm on 8 October, Sainsbury's averaged 196.9p for diesel and Tesco 197.6p. BP averaged 202.1p. That is up to 5.2p a litre, or £2.86 on a 55-litre fill.
- Check on the day. 1,219 forecourts reported a new diesel price on 8 October alone.
- Do not wait for the Budget. Even if duty is cut on 28 October, it will not change what you pay this week.
- Pay less while you wait. Every forecourt near you, cheapest first, so the supermarket gap is yours.
- Catch the drops. On iPhone and iPad, Price Drop Alerts tell you when a favourite forecourt cuts its price.
- See it the day it changes. Prices from the official data every 30 minutes, with the time they were last updated.
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How we counted
UK averages and brand averages are from the official Fuel Finder data at 8:41pm on 8 October 2026, for forecourts with a standard diesel (B7) or E10 unleaded price between 100p and 300p. The RAC figures, oil prices and government measures are from the sources below. Where a cut is in cents, we have not converted it to pence.
Sources
- ITV News: Average UK diesel price passes £2 for first time, RAC says, 2 October 2026
- Oilprice.com: Oil jumps as Iran steps up attacks on Hormuz tankers, 8 October 2026
- Forbes: Oil is flowing again, but gasoline and diesel prices aren't cooperating, 7 October 2026
- JOE: diesel price record, 2 October 2026
- CMA: Enhanced road fuel monitoring report, 18 August 2026
- The Local: What does Germany's fuel price cut mean for drivers?, 21 September 2026
- Agriland: Budget 2027 fuel excise cuts extended until end of February, 6 October 2026
- Qazinform: South Korea extends fuel tax cuts through November, 18 September 2026
- The White House: diesel affordability fact sheet, 5 October 2026
- ABC News: Fuel excise discount ends, 29 July 2026
- Euronews: Italy extends diesel excise cut for a final week, 10 September 2026
- RAC Foundation: Fuel duty rise postponed, 20 May 2026
- Express & Star (PA): Every possible measure being considered to cut cost of driving, says Burnham, 30 September 2026
- Irish News (PA): Diesel hits £2 a litre in the UK for the first time, 2 October 2026