Businesses struggle to profit as fuel prices soar

A stock image showing a woman wearing blue jeans, a green top and a black leather jacket. She has long and wavy brown hair and is filling up her car at a petrol station.

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption,

The cost of filling up a vehicle has soared as the conflict in the Middle East continued to disrupt global oil supplies

ByBea Swallow, West of England and Daisy Bodkin, Gloucestershire

Published26 minutes ago

Businesses across the West of England say they are struggling to make a profit as petrol prices soar to nearly £2 per litre.

Disruptions around critical shipping lanes like the Strait of Hormuz have tightened global oil supplies amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Retailers facing higher wholesale prices for fuel deliveries are given the choice of passing this increase onto the customer, or forfeiting their profitable margins.

Pieter-Jon Allis, owner of Stroud Taxi in Gloucestershire, said he faced "continual pressure to lowball" his prices in order to retain customers and still stay afloat.

'Complete nightmare'

"Obviously it's a concern because our chief business cost on a day-to-day basis is fuel. I think we're headed for pretty tough times ahead," Allis said.

He added at least 50% of the calls he receives are requests for quotes, as customers compare his pricing with other services, such as Uber.

"We're under a continual pressure to lowball ourselves and do prices we were doing 15 years ago, even though fuel prices are at an all time high," he said.

"It's just a complete nightmare in that respect."

Susannah Moffat, who runs Ledbury Road Services in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, said "the last thing we want is to lose more trade" by putting the prices up.

"The only thing we can do is keep cutting our margin, time and time again, to try and keep the price increases to a minimum," she said.

Moffat said the petrol station was now "relying" on income from shop sales instead.

"It's a difficult business to be in at the moment. Seems like there's no end in sight really, but hopefully it won't be forever," she added.

An aerial picture of a man standing next to a blood bike, which is covered in yellow hi-vis decals and equipped with medical supplies. The man is bald, wearing a yellow hi-vis and red vest, and leaning on the back of the motorbike.

Image source, Freewheelers Blood BikesImage caption,

Freewheelers Blood Bike charity say they may have to reduce the number of callouts if fuel prices continue to rise

Meanwhile, volunteer blood bike charity Freewheelers, which supports the NHS by delivering lifesaving medical products, said they are "sucking up the impact in our reserves".

The organisation covers an operational distance of more than 220,000 miles per year across Bristol, Somerset, Bath and west Wiltshire.

"We've spent £17,000 on fuel per year over the last couple of years," said Chris MacDonald, chair of the Bristol branch.

"This current year it's heading towards £22,000, so it's a significant jump."

The charity relies solely on public fundraising, and said if fuel prices continue to rise, they would have to reduce the number of "low priority" callouts.

"But we're not there yet. We can sustain the current situation for a while by digging into our reserves," MacDonald assured.