Petrol prices climb again to hit new record high of 143.7p per litre

Typical family car now £17 more expensive to fill up than 12 months ago, data shows

(Getty Images)

Petrol prices are at their highest level on record and 30p more expensive than this time last year, government figures show.

The average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts on Monday was 143.70p - up from 113.11p per litre on 2 November 2020.

The increase means it has become about £17 more expensive to fill up a typical 55-litre family car.

The current average price is the most expensive recorded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which publishes weekly updates.

It beats the previous high of 142.17p set in April 2012, according to the data.

Drivers were first alerted to record petrol prices last week, when separate figures from data firm Experian Catalist showed petrol was being sold at an average of 142.94p per litre.

The increase in fuel prices has been driven by the cost of oil doubling in the past year.

The rising cost of petrol also comes amid a surge in the cost of living for struggling families.

Energy prices have also soared in recent months as suppliers hiked up prices.

Inflation has also risen and is expected to rise further, meaning it costs more to buy everyday items including food.

Earlier BP - a major oil and gas company - said its profits have risen sharply as prices soar amid the economic recovery from the pandemic.

BP said its underlying replacement cost profits — the industry standard — jumped to $3.3bn (£2.4bn) in the three months ending in September, up from just $86m (£63m) in the same period a year earlier, when oil prices had slumped because of the pandemic.

The third-quarter figure also was an increase of 18 per cent from the previous quarter's $2.8bn (£2bn) and ahead of analysts' expectations of about $3.1bn (£2.3bn).

"This has been another good quarter for BP — our businesses are generating strong underlying earnings and cash flow while maintaining their focus on safe and reliable operations," BP chief executive Bernard Looney said.