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Rising Fuel Costs
And the RAC Foundation pointed out that fuel tax would rise even further in April. "Given that each penny increase in fuel duty raises about an extra £500 million for the Exchequer, it is easy to see why the chancellor is tempted to hike rates," said the foundation's director, Professor Stephen Glaister. "But if the nation's 34 million motorists are pushed too far they will drive less and the Treasury could actually see their tax take fall. "At the election there was much talk about a fuel duty stabiliser. Drivers will rightly be wondering what happened to that idea." The Freight Transport Association (FTA) said lorry drivers in 2010 had been paying an average of £3,800 more on fuel than in 2009. It said the 1 January rise alone would add another £1,200 to annual fuel bills. "Diesel is not an optional extra for industry. It is essential to keep shops stocked and businesses supplied with materials," said Simon Chapman, the FTA's chief economist. The head of a haulage company based in Stoke, Barry Proctor, said the rises were unfair. "This is a huge blow to the haulage industry. We've had horrendous weather conditions over the last few weeks, but yet again this industry has managed to deliver Christmas, unlike an awful lot of other industries that have failed their customers miserably. "And instead of a pat on the back from George Osborne, it's another body blow." As we are sure you are aware with the recent level of media coverage, both the commercial vehicle operator and the general motorist are feeling the pain of a triple whammy that’s pushed fuel prices up to record levels at the start of 2011: crude oil prices have risen to their highest level in over two years; fuel duty rose on New Year’s Day by the equivalent of 1p/litre after VAT. We have done our best to shield our customers as much as possible from the full impact of rising fuel, but unfortunately we can no longer continue to absorb the relentless escalation of fuel costs to our business; diesel costs alone have risen in excess 14% since April 2010 and now typically represent 40% of the operating costs of a 44-tonne truck. Our overall pricing strategy has therefore been designed to ensure no one segment of our customer base carries an unfair share of burden of these rising costs and as such we have no choice but to levy a surcharge to our existing rates of 2.1% across the board from February 1st 2011. Whilst we realise that these increases are always unwelcome, please be assured that continued focus on reuse, reduce, recovery and recycling both on site and through our MRF is the sustainable method to manage waste and the only way to meet ever increasing environmental commitments. Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12098981 www.cawleys.co.uk/News/News/Rising-Fuel-Costs |
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