Average haulage rates increase by meagre amount By Robin Meczes
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AVERAGE HAULAGE rates grew by less than inflation during 2012, official statistics have shown.
The latest Services Producer Price Index from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed a 0.2% increase in rates for freight transport by road during the last quarter of 2012 compared to the previous quarter, leaving the total average increase for the year at only 1.4%.
That increase compares poorly to the rise in average haulage rates during the previous year, which stood at 3.4%, and is also lower than the 1.6% average increase achieved in 2010.
The latest figures highlight the ongoing squeeze affecting CV operators, said director of policy at the Road Haulage Association (RHA) Jack Semple.
RHA figures suggest that operating costs over the year to September rose by 2.5% excluding fuel, he pointed out, while a survey by the association in mid-January found that a majority of vehicle owners did not expect to be able to increase their prices during 2013.
"We had an emphatic 'no' in response to this question," said Semple. "Customers are themselves working on slim margins, and requests for haulage rate increases are likely to prompt them to seek alternative suppliers offering lower rates."
A slight decline in fuel costs recently "may have hardened customers' attitude to any rate increase", added Semple.
"Some firms describe rates increases as essential to their survival," he said.
• See the investigation on page 14 for the first in our series of articles on rates.