Charities and small businesses in the North East are under financial strain from rising diesel prices. Source: bbc.co.uk.
What Happened
Diesel now costs over £2 per litre in the UK, according to the RAC.
Daft as a Brush, a cancer support charity, spends £15,000 a month on diesel — £5,000 more than last year.
Teesside Minibus Hire says its operations are no longer sustainable due to fuel costs.
Key Facts
- Diesel prices have surged due to global oil disruptions, including those from the Iran conflict.
- Daft as a Brush drives 600,000 miles yearly and planned to switch to electric vans.
- Teesside Minibus Hire signed long-term contracts based on old fuel prices.
- Fuel costs are eating into donations and operational budgets.
Why It Matters
For Daft as a Brush, rising fuel costs hurt patient transport services.
For Teesside Minibus Hire, costs are pushing operations close to collapse.
Customers are now choosing cheaper, unlicensed services that don’t cover real costs.
Background: Fuel Price Trends
After Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the UK froze fuel duty at 5p per litre.
The freeze remains until the end of the year.
Despite this, global supply issues have driven wholesale prices higher.
What to Watch Next
The government says there’s no risk of diesel shortages.
Local operators still worry about long-term survival without price drops.
Scott Jobson of Daft as a Brush said: At the pump, what you see is what we pay.
He added that costs are slowing growth.
Billy Johnson of Teesside Minibus Hire said: We’re not running at a loss yet, but we’re running close to it not being worthwhile or sustainable.
The fuel duty freeze offers short-term relief, but long-term financial stress remains.
Source: BBC News — Original article
Sources & further reading
Featured image: -2019-05-25 Charity shop, The Terrace, North Walsham.JPG by Kolforn (Kolforn) I'd appreciate if you could mail…, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Image source · License
