Is low cost supermarket fuel costing you dearly? | News

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Wholesale diesel prices have increased nearly 8% since the start 2016, and 2.7% in May 2016 alone. Meanwhile the price of unleaded fuel has increased 7.08% since the New Year, and 1.66% in May 2016. These increasing prices mean that fleet operators are coming under increased pressure to minimise fuel costs.

The major supermarkets account for a little over 15% of the total number of forecourts in the UK*, but Expense Reduction Analysts finds that typical company and van users purchase over 33% of their fuel at these sites. These figures suggest that something other than convenience is driving this behaviour. Loyalty points earned by purchasing fuel can then be used for discounted shopping, or other reduced price purchases (e.g. Channel Tunnel tickets), and the habit of having “always used this location” may be affecting driver behaviour. Interestingly, the one major fuel supplying supermarket not offering a loyalty scheme hardly features at all in fuel purchases by typical company car and van users.

Our analysis of some client user-driver behaviour includes examples of users who only ever fill up at one particular supermarket, irrespective of where they are travelling across the UK, and on detailed analysis has shown they have travelled significant extra mileages to access the supermarket sites.

The increase in distance travelled to get to these locations, and smaller more frequent pick-ups which reduce the productivity of your workforce, do however indirectly increase the cost of your fuel card purchases. Research also suggests that although supermarkets have a tendency to market themselves as selling cheap fuel, this may not always be the case, and in some instances may be directly increasing fuel card costs.

An Expense Reduction Analysts review of your fuel card purchases will show the networks and sites most often in use, enabling fleet operators to truly understand where their drivers are drawing fuel.

Expense Reduction Analysts also has access to fuel card solutions which offer discounted fuel at genuinely more convenient locations for business use (for e.g. on motorway and key trunk route locations) which are often the highest priced outlets at pump pricing.

Expense Reduction Analysts’ combination of behavioural analysis and direct cost savings help you identify precise management action strategies that can be put in place to reduce your fuel card costs.

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