Tasmanians finally get a fairer deal on fuel
It’s official - Tasmanians are no longer being ripped off at the petrol bowser. Research by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) shows that the gap has closed on average fuel prices around the nation. It also shows just how disadvantaged Tasmania was.
The report, released in mid-September, reveals that the average price for petrol in Hobart fell 15.7c in 2020-21 to 132.1c. That was the biggest price fall of any Australian capital – lower than Melbourne’s 131.1c, where the average price fell just 2.7c. Tasmanian fuel prices are now much closer to those in other capitals.
For years Tasmanians were paying more – often considerably more – than other Australians for this basic item. As the average prices for fuel around the nation in 2020-21 show, that gap has closed, and it’s remained that way so far in 2021 even as global oil prices push the retail price higher.
While the ACCC report shows that Hobart’s annual average prices were still 2.4 cents-per-litre higher than in the five largest cities, this was significantly lower than the 13.2 cent-per-litre differential in 2019–20.
The RACT Fuel Saver app was launched in December 2020 and petrol prices have fallen significantly since then.
We’ve long called for greater transparency when it comes to fuel prices, so we’re delighted to see this is being achieved in Tasmania with mandatory price reporting and our Fuel Saver app, and even more delighted that they are working to make fuel prices fairer for Tasmanians.
Although the wholesale price has been rising slowly since March, the margin between the wholesale and retail prices has remained constant at an acceptable 13-15c a litre for 91 octane petrol and 12-13c for diesel.
The transparency around fuel prices and the capacity for Tasmanians to shop around are a direct result of the power the RACT fuel saver app puts in the hands of consumers.
Read the ACCC report here.