THE rush to fill up has seen queues across the country and garages running dry.
While the Government insists there is enough fuel, the issue is likely to continue as the shortage of tanker drivers is set to affect deliveries.
If you do manage to get some petrol, these simple ideas can help drive down your costs.
Make your car less thirsty. You can do this by keeping your tyres fully inflated. Properly pumped-up tyres can reduce fuel consumption by up to three per cent. It’s also a good idea to lighten the load by removing an unused roof rack and emptying your car of clutter — plus a good excuse to have a tidy. Lighter cars use less fuel.
Drive more efficiently. You can do the same journey, covering the same distance, but using less fuel. Some ways to drive more efficiently include accelerating gradually, always driving in the highest possible gear and allowing your car to slow naturally, because your brake is a money burner. Re-starting your car adds up too, so keep moving if you can. For more driving advice see theaa.com/driving-advice.
Combine short trips. According to the AA, a cold start uses more fuel so it pays to combine trips if you can. Why not do all those errands in one hit? Of course, you could also just jump on your bike or get yourself a fitness tracker and get your steps up (and it means no splashing out on a gym membership).
Consider car-sharing. If you’re driving solo to work, have you thought about sharing lifts with colleagues? You could also use journeyprice.co.uk to calculate the cost of your journey by car. I used the site to calculate a 44-mile return journey to work and it estimated £8 — but that’s £2 each if you’ve got three passengers, saving £6 for each return journey. Alternatively, use your car less, walk more or take public transport — it helps the environment and your wallet.
Turn off the air-con. At low speeds, air-con increases fuel consumption, but at higher speeds the effect is less noticeable. Try opening windows around town and save the air-con for high-speed driving. Don’t leave it on all the time, but running it at least once a week helps keep the system in good condition.
Do fuel research. The website petrolprices.com allows you to do 20 free searches on petrol stations near you to see who has the best rates. When you need to fill up (queue or no queue) you might as well get the best price possible. I found differences of around 2p per litre in my immediate area.
- PRICES on this page correct at time of going to press. Deals and offers subject to availability.
Deal of the day
POP a 1litre bottle of Bombay Sapphire gin in your trolley for just £22 with a Tesco Clubcard, normally £27.50.
SAVE: £5.50
Cheap treat
BITE into a Mcvitie’s V.I.Bs. Caramel Indulgent Chocolate Cherry biscuit. A pack is £1 at Morrisons, down from £1.80.
SAVE: 80p
Top tips
CUT the cost of fizzy drinks. SodaStream has revealed you can now use its machines to create Pepsi Max, Pepsi, 7Up Free and 7Up at home.
The new PepsiCo flavours from SodaStream are available now for £4.99 from Sainsbury’s, at Asda from October 26, and directly through sodastream.co.uk.
Top swap
STORAGE doesn’t have to be boring. I love these woven baskets from H&M.
But instead of paying £8.99, head to Primark for a near-identical £6 basket.
SAVE: £2.99.
Giselle’s little helper
STOCK up on Christmas prezzies now. Boots’ Star Gifts are already back online (in store from Nov 27) so you can get up to half price off huge gift sets from the likes of Laura Ashley and even Superdry.
The Superdry Sport Backpack & Body+Face Wash Trio set was £45, now just £22.50.
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