This is the verdict from the RAC Fuel Watch, which found that the average liter of unleaded gasoline reached 167.3 p on March 22 – a record high. A record was also set by the increase of 11.62 p.m. per liter observed in unleaded petrol during the month – the largest increase recorded by the RAC in just one month since the start of monitoring in 2000. The previous biggest increase was last October, when gasoline prices rose by 7.43 liters per year. Diesel drivers experienced even bigger increases – the average price jumped by 22.06 p per liter, peaking at 179.9 p per liter on March 23. That was three times as much as in May 2008, the worst month before, when costs rose by 8.43 a.m. The increase in wholesale fuel costs is responsible, exacerbated by rising oil costs after the Russian invasion of Ukraine – the barrel cost $ 112.99 in early March before reaching a 14-year high of $ 137.72 on March 8. The price fell to $ 109.98 by the end of March, but previous increases had already pushed up wholesale prices by then. Use the Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 3:23 Will high gasoline prices spark a green revolution? The 5 p reduction in the chancellor’s fuel duty was slightly different, the RAC said, as a day came when the price of oil jumped by $ 6 a barrel. Since Rishi Sunak spoke to the public, average petrol and diesel prices have fallen by just 3.73 p and 2.61 p respectively. RAC spokesman Simon Williams said: “Drivers may well be upset that the ‘historic’ reduction in the chancellor’s fuel tax announced in the spring statement just two weeks ago did nothing to protect them from price increases. “A 5 percentage point reduction in tariffs should, in theory, have led to a 6 point reduction in pump prices as a result of the government receiving less VAT, but this is based on the fact that wholesale prices remain stable – something that It almost never happens – and retailers are justly passing on their reduced costs to drivers. “The fact that pump prices have fallen so little reflects the fact that the cost of buying fuel for retailers had risen before the spring declaration. “If the chancellor had temporarily cut VAT and not the fuel tax on fuel, as we asked him, the impact on pump prices would be immediate with drivers benefiting immediately. “The reduction in VAT would also have helped to some extent to protect drivers from future increases – something a tariff cut simply cannot do.”