Power cut?

Diesel is over £2 a litre. There’s still no queue.

In early October the RAC’s average price for a litre of diesel in the UK reached 200.01p. It’s the first time the national average has been above £2. The previous record, 199.09p, was set in June 2022.

Graham, Head of Contingency
Posted 12 November 2026
Cars queuing at a petrol station at dusk, one pump marked out of service

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Petrol was 174.71p. Filling a 55-litre diesel tank cost £110.01, which the RAC puts at £31.70 more than on 28 February, when the conflict between the US and Iran began. The RAC’s Simon Williams called it “a pump price threshold that no-one wanted to cross”.

Prices move daily, so for today’s figure look at RAC Fuel Watch.

Is this a shortage?

No. It’s expensive, and that’s a different problem.

The RAC puts the rise down to the Middle East conflict and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with possible US restrictions on diesel exports as a further risk. ExxonMobil has also had its Fawley refinery down for planned maintenance this autumn, and has said that is routine and doesn’t affect supply. A transport minister told Sky News in October that the UK has “a diverse range of supply” for diesel.

So the pumps have fuel. What they don’t have is fuel at a price anyone enjoys.

This matters because the two problems want opposite responses. In a shortage the worst thing you can do is rush out and fill up. With high prices, rushing out to fill up doesn’t hurt anyone, it’s just pointless.

What to do

  1. Keep the half-tank habit. Fill at half, as normal. It costs the same over a month and means you never have to care about a rumour. More in ready for a fuel shortage.
  2. Don’t fill cans. Stored fuel goes off, and a garage full of it is a hazard you’ve paid £2 a litre for.
  3. Shop around by a few miles, not twenty. The government’s Fuel Finder data now feeds the price-comparison apps. Driving across town to save 3p uses the 3p.
  4. Check your tyres. Soft tyres drag, and drag is fuel. It takes four minutes and it’s the only fuel saving that also makes the car stop better.
  5. Drive like there’s a full cup of tea on the dashboard. Smooth is cheap.

If you heat with oil

Heating oil is a close cousin of diesel and tends to follow it. If your tank is below half, get quotes now, and consider a buying club if your village has one. Don’t wait for the first cold week, when everybody else rings on the same morning.

The four-minute job

Under £15

AstroAI digital tyre pressure gauge

The glovebox

Backlit, accurate enough, and quicker than the forecourt machine that wants a pound and is out of order anyway.

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£25–45
The one I'd buy

Ring RTC450 digital tyre inflator

Doing it on the drive

Plugs into the 12V socket, you set the pressure, and it stops itself. Your car’s correct figures are on a sticker inside the driver’s door.

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Sources: RAC, UK diesel price hits new record high of £2 a litre, 2 October 2026; PetrolPrices on Fawley and the government response, 6 October 2026.