Petrol stations issued stern warning not to hike fuel prices

Servos across the country have been issued a stern warning as conflict continues in the Middle East.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has read the riot act to petrol companies amid the crisis in the Middle East warning that it must not be used as an excuse for price gouging.

The Treasurer has revealed he’s now written to the consumer watchdog to “make sure that Australians are treated fairly at the bowser”.

“We don’t want to see service stations do the wrong thing by Australian motorists,’’ he said.

“We want to make sure that the market is operating effectively when it comes to the petrol price and what’s happening with this volatility in the global oil price.

“We call on the service stations to do the right thing by their customers. We’ve empowered and asked the ACCC to use its monitoring powers to make sure that the servos are doing the right thing by Australian motorists.”

In his letter to the consumer watchdog, the ACCC, Mr Chalmers notes that events in the Middle East had pushed global oil prices up by over 25 per cent since the start of June, from around $62 per barrel to around $79 at the start of this week, before moderating this morning with news of a ceasefire.

“As you know, global oil prices are a primary driver of the cost of petrol at Australian bowsers,’’ he wrote.

The Treasurer has warned servos against price gouging.

“Recent spikes in the barrel price on international markets and volatility associated with unfolding events should not be used as an excuse for retailers to gouge customers or to increase prices opportunistically above and beyond the impact of events in the Middle East.

“I would expect the ACCC as the independent regulator enforcing Australia’s competition and consumer laws to investigate any concerns arising about misrepresentations regarding petrol prices, false and misleading conduct or anti-competitive conduct in petrol markets, and to take appropriate action.”

Last week, the Treasurer warned Australians could face a “perilous” threat to fuel prices as global supply chains are at risk from the heated Iran-Israel conflict.

“It’s a perilous moment for the Middle East, but also a perilous moment for the global economy,” he told Sky News.

“The starkest way that we see the impacts of what’s happening is with the oil price. Last Friday, the oil price jumped almost 11 per cent.

“This has big implications for the global economy. It has implications for inflation but also for global growth at a time when the global environment was already very uncertain.”

He warned motorists should expect volatility.

“It’s hard to imagine that any day-to-day movement in markets will be permanent,” the Treasurer said.

Petrol stations have been warned against hiking prices and blaming the Middle East conflict. Picture: Tony Gough

“We’re seeing mostly volatility in the oil price. We’re seeing the gold price shoot up because that’s where people invest when times are uncertain.

“What that means for us is the potential of higher petrol prices usually takes a couple of weeks before the international barrel price reaches the bowser price in the suburbs and towns of Australia.”

However, he also ruled out making any changes to the fuel excise to reduce the pressure on motorists.

“We haven’t changed our position on the fuel excise,” Mr Chalmers said.

“We’ve already seen a lot of volatility in petrol prices. In some parts of Australia, people must have been – 12 months ago, 18 months ago – paying $2.40 at the bowser in lots of places.

“That got down to $1.50, $1 60.”