Petrol and diesel owners have been told to never fill up their cars at peak times with midday and 5pm highlighted as the worst. Rebecca Bebbington, Personal Finance expert at NetVoucherCodes, has previously warned prices were usually “lower” at certain times of the day.
She suggested that topping up off-peak, either in the morning or late at night, could dramatically pay off. The tactic has been backed by other experts including well-known TV finance guru Martin Lewis. The simple hack could provide a small saving for motorists and a boost for cash-strapped road users this April.
Rebecca said: “Petrol prices can fluctuate throughout the day, with prices typically lower during off-peak hours.
“Try to fill up your tank early in the morning or late at night to take advantage of potentially lower prices.
“Avoid peak times such as midday and after 5pm when the majority of the country finishes work.”
Martin Lewis suggested that getting cheaper fuel at certain times of the day was generally an “urban myth”.
However, it was true that road users may get a “tiny bit extra” if they top-up their cars late at night instead of in the middle of the day.
Martin previously added: “Talk of filling up at night getting you more is a slight urban myth, as the difference is minuscule – pennies at best.
“Fuel pumps are calibrated by volume, so fill up at night when it’s colder and you get a tiny, tiny bit extra.”
The RAC recently suggested that petrol and diesel prices could dramatically drop in the run-up to Easter.
Simon Willians, RAC head of road policy, said a sharp drop in oil should correspond to savings at the forecourt.
He suggested this could be as much as 6p per litre at the pumps just in time for the bust Easter getaway which is now just days away.
He said: “Petrol should drop from its current UK average of 136p to 130p a litre and diesel from 143p to 137p.
“If unleaded were to fall to that level, it would be the cheapest since summer 2021. Diesel hasn’t been that low since September that year.”
