The wholesale price of diesel was just 6p more than petrol last week (121.06p compared to 115.48p), leaving drivers of diesel vehicles having to pay 168p a litre, compared to just 148p for unleaded.
The RAC calculates that if diesel was being sold at a fairer rate drivers would be paying no more than around 155p per litre, which would make the cost of filling an average 55-litre family car £7 less than it is today (£85.25, compared to the current £92.40).
RAC analysis shows retailers are currently taking more than double the margin on every litre of diesel they sell – just shy of a whopping 20p – compared to the 8.5p on unleaded, in effect subsiding petrol prices by charging more for diesel.
