UK fuel prices: The cost of filling most popular cars ‘jumps by up to £580 a year’

How monthly fuel bills are rising for the Nissan Qashqai, Vauxhall Corsa, Ford Focus and more best-selling models
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The cost of filling some of the UK’s most popular family cars will rise by hundreds of pounds this year, according to new research.

With prices remaining at near record levels despite a drop in oil prices and a cut in fuel duty, drivers are facing huge increases in their fuel bill compared with last year.

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Now, a study has revealed just how much more the owners of some of the country’s best-selling cars, including the Ford Focus, Nissan Qashqai and BMW 3 Series, are paying to fill their cars.

According to the data from Choose My Car, the owner of a petrol Vauxhall Corsa - Britain’s best-selling car last year - is paying £16 more per fill up than they did in March 2021.

Using Choose my Car’s estimated annual mileage of 13,000 that means at current prices, a driver would spend an extra £39 a month or £474 a year on fuel. Even at a more conservative 7,090 miles - the average obtained from 2019’s MOT data - that’s still an extra £259 a year.

It’s a similar story for owners of the Ford Fiesta - for many years the country’s best-selling car - with the cost of filling its petrol tank rising by £16.84 between March 2021 and March 2022.

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Diesel owners have it even worse as diesel prices have risen 38% compared to 33% for petrol. Both diesel Corsas and Fiestas cost around £20 more per fill-up than last year.

Founder of Choose My Car, Nick Zapolski, said: “All our bills seem to be going up at the moment, but fuel prices are absolutely staggering. It means some people will have to choose between running their cars and eating, in some scenarios - and that’s not a dramatic statement.

“While prices remain this high - and we hope it won’t be for long - all we can recommend is that people follow tips to drive economically.

Using data compiled by Choose my Car from the best-selling cars on its platform and based on an average mileage of 13,000, this is how much more owners of some of the UK’s most popular cars will pay for fuel:

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