Fuel Duty 2027: The July Rise and What It Costs Fleets

Fuel duty stays at 52.95p a litre on petrol and diesel until 30 June 2027. On 1 July 2027 it rises to 60.59p, a jump of 7.64p. The 28 October 2026 Budget cancelled the rises that had been planned for January and March 2027 and replaced them with this single step. VAT at 20% goes on top, so the pump price rises by about 9.2p a litre.

What did the Budget do to fuel duty?

It kept the 5p cut from March 2022 for six more months and moved the inflation rise to the same day. The Budget 2026 overview of tax legislation and rates (measure 2.18) extends the 5p cut from 1 January 2027 until 30 June 2027. On 1 July 2027 the rate goes back to its pre-2022 level and is then uprated by the Retail Prices Index.

The rates table in Annex A puts numbers on it: £0.5295 a litre to 30 June 2027 and £0.6059 from 1 July 2027, for unleaded petrol and diesel alike. Before the Budget, the plan had been 55.95p from 1 January 2027 and 57.95p from 1 March 2027. So fleets get six more months at today’s rate, then pay more than the old plan from July.

How much does the July rise add at the pump?

About 9.2p a litre. Each 1p of duty adds 1.2p at the pump because VAT is charged on the price including duty, so 7.64p of duty becomes 9.17p.

The starting point below is the diesel average for the week of 26 October 2026 in the DESNZ weekly road fuel prices: 199.22p a litre.

Date	Duty	Diesel at the pump, all else equal	Diesel van at 36 mpg
Now to 30 June 2027	52.95p	199.22p	25.2p a mile
From 1 July 2027	60.59p	208.39p	26.3p a mile

Pump prices also move with crude oil, exchange rates and refining margins. The table shows the duty effect only. It is not a forecast of the diesel price. You can follow the live figure on our fuel prices tracker.

What does the rise cost a fleet?

For a fleet of 50 vans, about £8,680 a year with VAT reclaimed. The sum: 50 vans at 18,000 miles each and 36 mpg is 900,000 miles, which is 25,000 gallons, or 113,652 litres. Each 1p of duty on those litres is £1,137, and the rise is 7.64p.

VAT matters. A VAT-registered fleet reclaims the VAT on fuel used for business, so it feels the duty itself. A business that cannot reclaim VAT feels 1.2 times as much.

Rise in duty	Extra cost a year, VAT reclaimed	Extra cost a year, no VAT reclaim
1p	£1,137	£1,364
7.64p (1 July 2027)	£8,683	£10,420

The rise lands part way through the 2027/28 financial year for most fleets, so a budget running April to March carries nine months of it, about £6,510 in the example.

To scale this to your own fleet, multiply your litres a year by 7.64p. Our fleet cost index does it for your vehicle mix and mileage.

How has fuel duty changed over time?

Duty rose from 2003 to 2011, was cut by 1p in 2011, then sat at 57.95p for eleven years until the 5p cut in March 2022. The table lists every change in the DESNZ weekly series, which starts in June 2003, with the date of the first week each new rate appears. The last row is the rate announced in the Budget.

First week at this rate	Duty (p a litre)	Change
9 June 2003	45.82	Start of the series
6 October 2003	47.10	+1.28p
11 December 2006	48.35	+1.25p
1 October 2007	50.35	+2.00p
1 December 2008	52.35	+2.00p
6 April 2009	54.19	+1.84p
7 September 2009	56.19	+2.00p
5 April 2010	57.19	+1.00p
4 October 2010	58.19	+1.00p
3 January 2011	58.95	+0.76p
28 March 2011	57.95	-1.00p
28 March 2022	52.95	-5.00p
1 July 2027 (announced)	60.59	+7.64p

At 60.59p, duty will be higher than at any point in the series. The previous peak was 58.95p in early 2011. The 7.64p rise is also the largest single step in the table, bigger than the 5p cut it reverses.

What can a fleet do about a rise in fuel duty?

A fleet cannot set the duty rate, but it controls how many litres it burns, and speed is the biggest lever. The Department for Transport’s fuel consumption curves, published in its TAG data book (v2.03, May 2026, table A1.3.8), show a diesel van using 14.5% less fuel per mile at 60 mph than at 68 mph.

Put that next to the numbers above. Say 10% of your fleet’s fuel is burned on miles driven at 68 mph. Bringing those miles down to 60 mph saves about 1.45% of your total fuel. On the 113,652 litres of the 50-van example, that is about 1,650 litres, or around £2,740 at the week of 26 October 2026 diesel price excluding VAT. That covers about a third of the July rise, and the saving grows with the duty, because every litre you do not buy is a litre you pay no duty on.

Your own share of fast miles will differ. Some fleets have almost none. Others run long motorway legs and have a lot. The speed and fuel calculator takes your share and gives you the litres and pounds. For the wider picture on pump prices, see diesel at £2 a litre and fleet fuel costs. For how a cap performs in practice, see fuel savings from speed limiters.

Duty is not the only Budget change for fleets with company cars. The tax on those moves in its own steps, now set to 2030/31, in company car tax rates 2026 to 2031.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is fuel duty in 2027?

52.95p a litre from 1 January to 30 June 2027, then 60.59p from 1 July 2027. Both rates are in the Budget 2026 overview of tax legislation and rates, Annex A. Petrol and diesel pay the same.

Is fuel duty going up in January 2027?

No. The rise planned for 1 January 2027 was cancelled in the 28 October 2026 Budget, and so was the March 2027 step. The 5p cut now runs to 30 June 2027.

When does fuel duty go up?

On 1 July 2027, from 52.95p to 60.59p a litre. That is the old 57.95p rate restored, plus an inflation rise in line with the Retail Prices Index. With VAT, it adds about 9.2p a litre at the pump.

How much will the fuel duty rise cost my fleet?

Multiply your annual litres by 7.64p. For 50 vans doing 18,000 miles at 36 mpg, that is 113,652 litres, so about £8,680 a year with VAT reclaimed and £10,420 without.

Do petrol and diesel pay the same fuel duty?

Yes. Petrol and diesel pay the same main rate, 52.95p a litre now and 60.59p from 1 July 2027. Diesel costs more at the pump in the weekly DESNZ figures because of the price of the fuel before duty and VAT, not because of a higher duty rate.

What happens to red diesel?

The rebated rate for red diesel also keeps its cut to 30 June 2027, at 6.48p a litre, and goes to 11.65p from 1 July 2027, according to Annex A of the Budget overview.

What is the quickest way to offset a fuel duty rise?

Use less fuel per mile. The Department for Transport’s curves show a diesel van using 14.5% less per mile at 60 mph than at 68 mph. A speed limiter holds that cap on every journey, so the saving does not depend on each driver remembering it.

Cut your fleet’s fuel bill

Find your own number with the fleet cost index. Enter your vehicles and mileage, and it shows what a pence rise in fuel costs you a year. Then use the speed and fuel calculator to see what a lower cap is worth against it.

A speed cap works on every journey without the driver having to remember it. How much of the saving reaches your bill depends on how many of your miles are driven above the cap, and TrackSpeed, our speed limiter and GPS tracking in one device, shows you that share.

Talk to us. AutoKontrol has made speed limiters in Britain since 1985, with nationwide installation in the UK and supply and support for fleets worldwide through our engineers and partners. Book a free consultation or get a quote.