Petrol sales fall 20% as drivers feel the squeeze: home working takes off

Motorists are shunning their cars following record rises in the price of fuel, according to the International Energy Agency.

The organisation has reported that ‘British motorists are clearly driving less’ following a doubling of crude oil prices in the last 12 months.

Petrol retailers have reported that fuel sales have dropped sharply over the past few weeks and the latest figures appear to show that demand for petrol in Britain has slumped by as much as 20% over the past 12 months.

The IEA says that motorists are instead opting to use public transport as their cars become too expensive to run.

The analysis provides some of the first hard evidence that motorists are realising that they have to change their behaviour in response to the sharp rise in petrol prices. The AA reports that average UK unleaded petrol prices are now at 116.9p a litre with diesel prices at 130.3p a litre..

A survey reported that 96.3% of fleet decision makers said that fuel costs were reducing business mileage - up 17.5% year-on-year - and 94.5% said that home working was also reducing the number of business miles travelled - up by 19.4% year-on-year.

A four-day strike by tanker drivers delivering to Shell fuel stations is due to start on Friday (June 13) unless last ditch talks taking place today (Wednesday, June 11) prove successful. The strike, over a pay claim, has prompted Prime Minister Gordon Brown to issue a ‘don’t panic’ warning to drivers. A spokesman for the Prime Minister said emergency plans were in place to minimise disruption and he stressed: “We want the public to buy as normal, to avoid creating problems.”

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