UK Diesel Hits Record £2 a Litre as Iran War Squeezes Supply

The average price of diesel at UK forecourts has hit a record £2 a litre, heaping fresh cost pressure on motorists and small businesses across Britain.

The milestone marks a sharp escalation in fuel costs that began in late February. That was when the US-Israel war on Iran started disrupting supplies of crude and refined oil products from the Gulf, according to the report. The supply shock has driven the price of oil up worldwide.

Why are pump prices at record levels?

Diesel prices have risen sharply since late February, tracking the disruption to Gulf supplies. The conflict has constricted flows of both crude oil and refined products, and the cost increases have spread across the wider economy, not just at the pump.

For small businesses that depend on vehicles, the £2 threshold turns fuel from a line item into a structural cost problem. One motorist quoted in the coverage put it bluntly: "Half my day's pay goes to filling up my car."

Who is feeling it most?

The report identifies two groups under the most strain:

• Motorists, facing record pump prices for diesel
• Small businesses, which are struggling with rising operating costs as fuel inflation feeds through the economy

The squeeze comes as cost increases ripple across sectors dependent on diesel for transport, delivery and logistics.

What happens next?

The trajectory of pump prices hinges on the Gulf conflict. As long as the US-Israel war on Iran continues to disrupt supplies of crude and refined products, the upward pressure on UK forecourt prices is set to persist — and with it, the broader cost increases now moving through the British economy.

"Half my day's pay goes to filling up my car" — the words of one UK motorist captured in the coverage — may become a more familiar complaint in the months ahead.