Diesel drivers can save up to £40 per year on fuel following the launch of near real-time pump prices from Thursday, October 8. For the first time, Google Maps will display near real-time prices for both diesel and petrol in the UK, allowing drivers to find the cheapest places to fill up.
The UK Government launched its Fuel Finder service earlier this year to help drivers compare fuel costs at every petrol station nationwide. Under the initiative, all filling stations are now required by law to report pump prices within 30 minutes of a change, making costs more transparent.
How the new Google Maps feature works
From Thursday, October 8, drivers can open Google Maps and search for a nearby forecourt to see near real-time diesel and petrol prices displayed on the app. According to the Government, drivers can save an average of £40 per year by comparing prices and seeking out the cheapest places to fill up, with Fuel Finder now covering 99% of all fuel sold on UK roads.
Minister for Energy Consumers Polly Billington said: “Tackling the affordability crisis is our first responsibility and for so many families and businesses, petrol and diesel are essential goods, not luxuries.”
“Accessing the cheapest fuel should be simple, which is why it is a gamechanger for near real-time fuel prices to be shown on Google Maps for the first time in the UK, helping drivers to find the best deal and save money at the pump.”
Fuel price reporting rules
Since February 2026, petrol stations across the UK have been required to report the price of their fuel within 30 minutes of it changing or risk a fine. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) can take action where there is evidence that petrol stations are not complying with the law.
The Government said the overwhelming majority of petrol stations are inputting data to Fuel Finder promptly, with around 99% of all fuel sold on UK roads now reflected. The data is already used by thousands of drivers across apps such as Waze, Petrol Prices, the AA, Confused.com and RAC Fuel Watch, and its integration with Google Maps will help millions more motorists find the best price at the pump.
Record diesel prices
The launch on Google Maps comes after the average price of a litre of diesel hit £2 for the first time this month. Fuel analysis by the RAC has shown that diesel has risen to a record of 200.01p a litre, meaning the cost of filling up an average family car now stands at £110 – close to £32 more than at the start of the US/Iran war.
Petrol prices have also been rising, with a litre of unleaded now standing at 174.71p on average, around 42p more than at the start of the Middle East conflict. It means that the cost to fill an average-sized petrol car now stands at £96 overall.
The RAC’s head of policy Simon Williams said this month: “For an average 45mpg diesel car, the cost works out at an extraordinary 20p per mile, so a driver covering 10,000 miles a year is now spending £2,020 on fuel a year. Households will be tightening the purse strings, while businesses may have no option but to pass these additional costs onto customers.”
“The previous highest price of 199.09p seen in June 2022 is already becoming a distant memory as the conflict in the Middle East continues with no sign of a deal to reopen the critical oil and gas shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz.”
The RAC said that drivers ‘will be looking to the Government’ to assist with the rising fuel bills by ‘lowering fuel duty further or reducing VAT in October's budget’.
