Fuel or food? The state of fuel prices in Wales as fuel costs hit 18 year high
Video report by ITV Wales Cost of Living Correspondent Carole Green
Drivers have been hit by the steepest weekly hike in fuel prices in at least 18 years due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The average price of fuel has increased dramatically in the UK over the last twelve months, with many drivers fearing being able to fill a tank of fuel.
A litre of petrol that cost 115.39 pence at the start of January 2021, now costs 152.95 pence, an increase of 37.56 pence.
Diesel has seen an even greater rise, with a litre that cost 119.97 pence in January 2021, now costing 158.56 pence, an increase of 38.59 pence.
The weekly increases of 3.8 pence for petrol and 5.2 pence for diesel are the largest since June 2003.
Oil prices have spiked due to concerns over the reliability of supplies amid the war in Ukraine.
The price per barrel of Brent crude oil – the most commonly used way of measuring the UK’s oil price – reached $139 on Monday, its highest level in 14 years.
Tracy Wilkins from Connah’s Quay is dependent on her car to get her to hospital appointments, and the rising costs have forced her to decide between food or fuel.
Tracy told ITV Wales: "If I haven't got money for petrol, I can't get to those appointments.
"I can only normally afford to put £10 in, and if I have an appointment, that lasts a day.
"I don't think it's [the car] not been in the red for a while, it just doesn't last."
Tracy, who has Coeliac's Disease, isn't able to eat gluten, meaning her groceries already cost on average more than a standard shop.
She says she is now having to choose between buying food and buying fuel.
"Even going over a penny worries me, because I know it's only a penny but that's a penny for something else," she continued.
"We don't go out as much as we used to, we don't shop, we don't buy clothes for ourselves.
"Sometimes gluten free bread costs as much as £5 for a loaf. If I have to have my blood taken, I put £5 petrol in. I'm then deciding between food or petrol."
The picture across Wales
The cost of a litre of fuel is not universal across Wales, and both the price and the availability of choice varies across the country.
According to price comparison website petrolprices.com, drivers can find a litre of unleaded petrol for as cheap as little as 144.9 in areas such as Newport, Merthyr and Pontypool.
However, a litre of unleaded can cost as much as 168.9 pence in Cardiff and 164.9 pence in Carmarthen, Caernarfon, Llanidloes and Wrexham.
There are also disparities in the choice customers have, with the range in certain areas of Wales far higher than others.
In Cardiff, for example, there is a 21 pence difference between the highest and lowest cost of a litre of unleaded petrol.
In places such as Barry, Abergavenny, Holyhead and Flint, there is only a five to six pence difference.
What is being done?
The UK’s chancellor of the exchequer, Rishi Sunak, is expected to make his spring statement later this month, ahead of the increase to the energy price cap and the rise in National Insurance. Inflation is also expected to continue to increase.
The Welsh Government has produced a cost of living package that provides support to households in the current financial year and next year.
The £330 million scheme will mean many households with the lowest incomes in Wales will be able to receive payments of £350.
Addressing the cost of fuel directly, Jane Hutt, the Welsh Government’s minister for social justice said: “It’s important that we look at the impact of the cost of living crisis.
“The UK Government has to play its part and we are calling on the chancellor to make sure that the spring statement addresses this.
“We have to make sure there is a new package to enable us to meet the needs of households.
“The UK Government can make a change in terms of benefits levels and in the spring statement putting in more money.
“We will do everything we can to get our funding out to people to help them, but the UK government has got to respond to this as well.”