UK drivers still paying too much for road fuel, says regulator

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain's competition regulator said on Friday the country's drivers are still paying too much for road fuel, with increases in retail fuel margins costing them over 1.6 billion pounds ($2.1 billion) in 2023.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said its analysis showed the cost to drivers of weakened competition in the fuel sector persisted, and that margins were "still significantly above historic levels."

It said supermarkets’ fuel margins were roughly double their 2019 level.

The report echoes the findings of a 2023 CMA review, which proposed reforms to help boost competition in the sector by giving consumers more information about pricing.

"One year on and drivers are still paying too much. We want to work with government to put in place our recommendation of a real-time fuel finder scheme to kick-start competition among retailers," CMA Chief Executive Sarah Cardell said in a statement.

The watchdog compiled its analysis using a voluntary price-sharing system, which it said covered only 40% of fuel retail sites and was not yet comprehensive enough to properly help consumers and impact competition.

The CMA said legislation proposed by the new Labour government could provide the legal basis for a comprehensive and compulsory scheme for price sharing, but that this would take time to set up.

($1 = 0.7777 pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; editing by William James)