1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140 
Dery rise sparks row
Page 8
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
OUTRIGIIT disagreement between the haulage and oil industries has been sparked off by the latest scheduled price increase in bulk derv.
Last week's 1.(ip per litre (7.3p per gallon) increase has been received with "indignation and anger by Britain's hauliers-, the Road Haulage Association says.
So far this year, seven price increases and four reductions have meant that operators have suffered an overall rise of 7.8p per litre — or. 35.5p a gallon — on the scheduled price, it argues.
And although rebating occurs to an extent, hauliers will again be out of pocket from this latest rise, the RHA says, "Our members would not be complaining in such numbers if they weren't really paying more," a spokesman said.
Austin Caulfield Transport, from Irlam, Greater Manchester, complained to CM that. including the rebate changes, it is paying 15.9p more per gallon for its dery than it did four months ago.
This amounts to an extra i:1,000 in dery a month, which cannot be recovered from customers, its managing director Austin Caulfield said. "I Lathers are subsidising the nation," he said.
But the oil companies insist that with the tierce rebating that is taking place hauliers are paying are little different than they were at the beginning of the year, and that prices need to rise to cover oil companies' costs.
One major oil company told CM that although dery is sold direct to British operators, and not through the spot market, the present high spot market is allowing the oil companies breathing • space to recoup margins.
Oil Price Assessment, the company which provides independent information to the Government and EEC about oil prices, also insists that hauliers were paying around 32p net per litre before the latest increase. This is the same price it records from the oil companies for the end of last year.
But the RHA continues to submit information from its members on the price changes to the Office of Fair Trading and is calling for action against the oil companies.
• The Freight Transport Association has launched a fuel price survey service for its members, in order to give them a better insight into how much operators receive in discounts.
According to John Hall, of John flail Associates (the company producing the information for the PTA), large buyers of dery do not necessarily 'pay the lowest price. Operators' ability to •. negotiate determines the price paid.