NRMA: it pays to shop around for petrol
IF there is one guarantee behind the Central Coast’s seesawing petrol prices, is it pays to shop around after a snapshot found up to a 20c difference between Toukley and Woy Woy.
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IF there is one guarantee behind the Central Coast’s seesawing petrol prices, is it pays to shop around.
The fluctuating prices have left many motorists seeing red and accusing big oil of gouging drivers over the holiday period.
But analysis of petrol data by NRMA found Coasties were up to 15 cents a litre better off than their Sydney counterparts in the lead up to Christmas.
After being a couple of cents more expensive in the first week of November, petrol prices continued to fall on the Coast compared with an “unusual” price cycle hike in Sydney which saw the average price of unleaded jump nearly 20 cents.
This saw Coast motorists paying up to 15 cents a litre less than Sydney drivers by mid November.
However the first week of December saw prices in both areas jump to around the $1.44 mark and between Christmas and the New Year, the average price of unleaded on the Central Coast was 6-9 cents/L more expensive than Sydney.
NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said the start of the New Year saw a new price cycle, with the average price of unleaded 4.1 cents higher in Sydney.
“The current average price for unleaded on the Central Coast is 139.8 cents per litre, Sydney 143.9,” he said.
“The average price of unleaded on both the Central Coast and in Sydney has been steadily climbing over the past week.”
Average prices put aside, the difference at the bowser can be most pronounced where on the Coast motorists fill up and when.
A snapshot of prices on Saturday found a difference of almost 20 cents/L between service stations from Toukley to Woy Woy in the space of a few hours.
At the Toukley 7 Eleven on Main Rd unleaded e10 fuel was 131.2 cents/L in the morning compared with 147.9 cents/L at the Wyoming Caltex and 148.4 cents/L at the Shell on Ocean Beach Rd at Woy Woy by the afternoon — a difference of 19.2 cents/L.
Long suffering Woy Woy Peninsula motorists have often complained of paying more at the bowser than the rest of the Coast and data compiled by “Digital” Dave Abrahams, of Hardys Bay, found they had reason to complain.
Analysing the NSW Government’s Fair Trading Live Fuel Data Feed Mr Abrahams compared the average daily price of e10 for Peninsula service stations against those in Gosford and Wyong from November 13 to December 19.
His analysis found Peninsula motorists were paying on average 6-18 cents/L more than those in Gosford and Wyong, where daily prices never dipped below those on the Peninsula..
Terry Davidson, of Green Point, said the fluctuations made it hard not to feel that “we seem to be getting fed to the wolves”.
“There may have been four of five days where Sydney was cheaper but over December I honestly think fuel companies were making the most of the holidays,” he said.
Loretta Brown, of Empire Bay, described the discrepancies at the pump as “ridiculous”.
“They’re ridiculous and they always are on the Central Coast,” she said.
“I have travelled quite a bit around Australia and little towns in the middle of nowhere have cheaper petrol than here. That’s ridiculous, why do we pay more?”