Diesel falls to lowest price in six years after oil hits $40.40 a barrel

The average cost of diesel hit 109.48p a litre on November 30

A barrel of crude fell over $3 in November to a six-year low of $40.40 (Getty)

Diesel has fallen to its lowest price in six years after the oil price dropped again, dragging down fuel prices.

The average cost of diesel hit 109.48p a litre on November 30 after it started the month at 109.77p.

The average price of petrol was also down for the fifth month in a row from 107.67p to 106.98p after hitting a nine-month low on 11 November at 106.92p, according to RAC Fuel Watch data.

A full tank of petrol is now £8 cheaper than it was this time last year, while Diesel is £9 cheaper for a tank, slashing the cost of long car journeys over Christmas.

“In the expensive run-up to Christmas, drivers of both petrol and diesel vehicles are benefitting from far cheaper fill-ups than they did at this time last year," said Simon Williams, RAC Fuel Watch spokesman.

UK fuel prices should mirror the price of oil (RAC)

Fuel is cheaper because the oil price continues to fall. A barrel of crude fell over $3 in November to a six-year low of $40.40, though the positive effect of this was mitigated by a weaker pound. Oil is traded in dollars, which makes it more expensive in the UK when the pound is weaker against the dollar.

Williams said the RAC expects a very slight average petrol price reduction in the next two weeks, with another 2p coming off diesel.

Falling prices have led to slightly higher petrol and diesel sales. HMRC oil duty statistics for October show combined sales of petrol and diesel were 1.9 per cent up on September at 3.905 billion litres and up 1.8 per cent on the previous October.