Daily fuel price caps now in effect in Victoria
Victoria has introduced daily fuel price caps to prevent price-gouging at the pump, as residents are urged not to panic buy petrol.
Under the new law that comes into effect today, retailers must set their daily price of fuel at 2pm on the previous day.
That price is then capped and will apply for the 24 hours from 6am the following day.
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Victoria has introduced daily fuel price caps from today. Photo by Bai Xuefei / Xinhua via Getty Images
"How often do you see a cheap price in the morning, only for it to jump by the afternoon?" Premier Jacinta Allan said.
"We're stopping families from getting ripped off at the servo and helping them save hundreds a year."
While retailers can still choose to reduce the price further during the 24-hour capped period, they are not allowed to increase it.
The rules are hoped to put downward pressure on fuel prices.
Petrol stations that fail to register or report their prices can now face a fine of more than $3000 for each breach or $24,000 if taken to court.
The capped price will be published on the government's Servo Saver app at 4pm each day.
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Fuel prices in Australia have surged off the back of global oil prices rising by 30 per cent. Dion Georgopoulos
Global oil prices surged 30 per cent to $US110 per barrel yesterday as the US-Israeli war in Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage used to transport one-fifth of the world's fuel supply.
It was the first time oil prices exceeded $US100 since the aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Nationally, fuel prices have soared over $2 a litre as some residents panic-buy petrol.
"What we are now seeing is some service stations running low on supply and that is because Australians are buying fuel at a far greater rate than they normally would," NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said yesterday.
Concerns have also been raised about the national fuel supply after Energy Minister Chris Bowen last week said there were only 32 days' worth of jet fuel, 34 days of diesel and 36 days of petrol available.
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