Rising fuel costs and increasing depreciation contributed to a rise in the expense of running a new
car in 2010, recent figures have shown. The data from the RAC showed that the cost of motoring
rose last year and are expected to rise sharply again in 2011 with increased fuel duty and rising oil
prices.
Cost of motoring on the rise
The RAC figures found that the expense of running a new car rose to £5,869 in 2010 with
depreciation (£3,072) and fuel (£1,300) the most significant costs. Owners of used cars faced an
average cost of £4,441 last year, including £1,040 in depreciation and £1,396 in fuel.
With the average cost of a litre of diesel reaching 139.71p and standard unleaded now costing
133.34p per litre (according to PetrolPrices.com) experts predict that the cost of running a car will
rise again in 2011.
Fuel duty is set to rise by inflation plus 1p on 1 April (the ninth tax increase since December 2008),
which will increase prices by between 3 and 4p per litre at the pump (around £50 per year on
average).
How to cut the costs of driving
The Guardian reports that to combat rising fuel costs, drivers should make sure tyres are well
inflated and should drive sensibly, get their car serviced regularly to maintain engine efficiency,
avoid unnecessary use of air conditioning, and get rid of roof racks to improve aerodynamics.’
The newspaper also suggests shopping around for the best fuel prices (www.petrolprices.com can
help) and taking advantage of cheap supermarket deals.
Another factor which can cut the cost of your motoring is to shop around for better value car
insurance. Paying your premium up front sometimes saves you an APR charge whilst correctly
estimating your annual mileage can also cut your premium.
