Driver's blast at petrol station price 'lottery'
The forecourt of Shell in Fakenham, on Creake Road, on July 28, 2022 - Credit: Aaron McMillan
A Fakenham driver has blasted the petrol price 'postcode lottery' - saying inflated local prices are hitting motorists near the town.
Mervyn Whale claims the price at his local filling stations at Morrisons and Shell are charging between six or seven pence a litre more than stations in Norwich and King’s Lynn.
On the afternoon of July 28, unleaded petrol at Morrisons was 195.9 pence per litre (PPL) and 188.9 PPL at Shell. For diesel, motorists are being asked to pay 197.9 PPL both at Shell and the supermarket.
The sign advertising the fuel prices at Morrison's petrol station in Fakenham - Credit: Aaron McMillan
Mr Whale said on the morning of July 27, it was 195 PPL for unleaded at Morrisons and at Shell, and 198/199 PPL for diesel at both locations.
A spokesperson for Morrison said: "Petrol prices vary from town to town and even neighbourhood to neighbourhood, however, we will always strive to be competitive in each local area we operate in.”
A spokesman for Shell added: "Prices fluctuate at service stations for a number of reasons – including wholesale fuel prices and operating costs, which include things like transporting the fuel to forecourts and running the service stations themselves.”
The Morrison petrol station in Fakenham - Credit: Aaron McMillan
The 70-year-old said as news came of lower prices at the pump from across Norfolk, he feels his local station has not followed suit.
Most Read
- 1 Village green set ablaze as temperatures soar
- 2 Drought declared in Norfolk
- 3 'Revolutionary' laundromat arrives in Fakenham
- 4 New 250-space car park could be created near picturesque Norfolk harbour
- 5 Revealed: Why wasps chase you and how to get rid of them this summer
- 6 Where will be the hottest place in Norfolk this weekend?
- 7 How to see the last supermoon of the year this weekend
- 8 Photographer offers free event amid cost of living crisis
- 9 PICTURES: Wells Carnival parade makes dazzling return
- 10 Fears of fire service strains as new 'cardiac arrest' trial starts
“Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve seen articles about the price [of fuel] coming down, and the prices are in other places, but in Fakenham, they seem to think we are all millionaires and can fill up at this price,” he said.
“I do not think they care.
“I feel that this is the way they have us, telling us, ‘if you don’t like it, go elsewhere’.
The forecourt of Shell in Fakenham, on Creake Road, on July 28, 2022 - Credit: Aaron McMillan
“If you want to pay less, you either have to go to Dereham or, Lynn or Hunstanton.
Mr Whale said he will often fill up from the Asda on Drayton High Road, in Norwich, when he goes to visit his mother at her care home - even if he still has half a tank.
He also believes that while he is not using the car less, he will often wait until he is going somewhere with cheaper fuel before filling up.
Now, Mr Whale is calling on his petrol stations to lower the prices to match other offerings in Norfolk.
