UK diesel prices hit record high as Iran war drives up fuel costs
UK diesel prices have reached a record 199.18 pence per litre, driven by the US-Israeli war on Iran and global supply pressures, the RAC said.
Diesel prices at UK forecourts have climbed to an all-time high, with the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran pushing up fuel costs, the motoring organisation RAC said.
A litre of diesel now costs 199.18 pence, edging past the previous record of 199.09 pence set in June 2022, when energy markets were reeling from Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Filling an average family car now costs close to £110 — about £31 more than before the current conflict began, according to Simon Williams, the RAC's head of policy.
The surge is not confined to motorists. Because diesel is widely used in industry and agriculture, higher prices are feeding into logistics and transport costs across a broad range of goods.
Fuel costs are a major component of UK inflation, which reached a five-month high in August, intensifying pressure on households already coping with a prolonged cost-of-living squeeze.
International diesel prices have repeatedly set records in recent months, squeezed by shrinking global refining capacity and supply disruptions linked to conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine. Prices rose again last week after US President Donald Trump expressed support for a possible ban on American diesel exports — a move that would leave net importers such as the UK and other European countries competing for a diminished pool of supply.
The UK's domestic refining base has also narrowed. Four working refineries now have a combined crude processing capacity of 1 million barrels per day, down from 1.27 million bpd across six plants in 2024 after two sites closed last year.
Dependence on imports is significant: diesel accounted for nearly 40% of the UK's total oil product imports in 2025, with the United States supplying 31% of that volume, according to the latest Digest of UK Energy Statistics. Overall, the country imports almost 55% of the diesel it consumes.
Williams said only a sustained fall in oil prices over several weeks, rather than days, would bring relief at the pumps, and suggested the government could ease the burden on drivers by cutting fuel duty further or reducing VAT.