It's happening, it's about to cost a whole lot more to fill up your tank as of this Friday.
Since March last year, the Government has discounted the price of petrol across NZ to help us Kiwis during the whole cost of living crisis going on. However, that discount is about to be done and dusted, meaning it’ll cost you more at the pump to fill up from the 30th of June.
But before you go panic-filling your steel on wheels, we've got some handy tips from Terry Collins, a spokesperson for AA, to help you ease the burn on your wallets.
First things first, we can expect a hike of around 29 cents per litre in fuel prices.
Terry suggests you take the time to search high and low for the best petrol prices in your area.
We were in for a right fright when we found out there can be whopping 60-cent differences in fuel prices within the same city like Auckland. So shopping around can make a significant difference.
One way to shop around is by using the apps offered by different petrol stations. These apps often provide special discounts on fuel, so keep an eye out for those.
“There’s a certain company that allows you to buy up to a thousand litres at the price and use it any time. So if you can find that cheap price prior to the tax going back on, you can buy the petrol at that price after the taxes go back on.”
Keep an eye out for promotional days too. Companies like Gull, BP and Z often have special discount days where you can save a good few cents per litre.
Terry assures us that there'll be plenty of these offerings in the last week before the subsidy ends, so keep your ears open for any decent deals.
He also shared another handy hack that could save you some serious cash.
“BP and a whole bunch of other companies do it. Say on Wednesday you get a 10c discount and you can store their discounts or you can cash them up at the time. If you've bought the minimum purchase, which is $40 at $2.50 a litre, you would get 16 litres,” Terry explained.
He continued: “So if you cashed it up every time, you'd save $1.60. Ten fills over two months, you would have saved yourself $16. However, if you don't cash them up at the time and you save them and you wait until your last fuel, you would have a dollar's worth of discounts and you could buy 50 litres”.
"SO YOU WOULD GET $50 WORTH THE PETROL INSTEAD OF $16. AND IT'S EXACTLY THE SAME SCHEME. IT'S JUST HOW YOU USE IT.”
Same scheme, bigger savings. Sounds pretty bloody good to me!
Last but not least, Terry advises against waiting until the final day of the subsidy to fill up your tank. A sudden rush of cars can lead to traffic problems and even cause fuel stations to run dry. So plan ahead and avoid the last-minute rush.
So there you have it, some handy tips to help you navigate the end of the fuel discount and keep you driving a little further without breaking the bank.
