BP petrol station on Waihi Rd. Photo / George Novak
Petrol station workers are copping abuse and petrol thefts are on the rise at a local station as the pain at the pump worsens.
Petrol prices in the North Island (excluding Auckland and Wellington) are up 14.4 per cent compared to the same time last year.
Karam Kaur, who co-owns the BP on Waihi Rd, believed the rising petrol prices was a reason for people threatening to boycott the station or filling their cars and driving away without paying.
"That happens a lot."
Kaur said more people were also putting the bare minimum of fuel into their cars and commenting that was all they could afford.
"We have to explain to people it's not us, it's the suppliers."
She said there was an assumption BP would absorb the costs: "they don't realise we're small business owners."
She owned the station with her husband, Pranh Singh, who said they copped a lot of abuse. Recently they lost $2000 over two months from petrol thefts.
He said when people stole the gas, the couple ran at a loss as they only made a profit of about 5 cents per litre, relying heavily on the store.
Singh said many people would fill their cars and say they forgot their wallet, their card declined, or say they didn't realise they didn't have the cash.
As a result, they've needed to increase how often they switched the pumps to pre-pay, but motorists got "grumpy" as a result.
A survey of 10 Tauranga petrol stations on Monday found prices of 91 between $2.347 and $2.217 while in Rotorua, 10 stations had 91 prices varying between $2.187 and $2.249.
This excluded any discounts.
Diesel prices in Tauranga ranged between $1.397 and $1.489, while in Rotorua, they were between $1.457 and $1.519.
A Stats NZ insights analyst spokeswoman said for the North Island, excluding Auckland and Wellington, prices were up by 14.4 per cent in the June 2021 quarter when compared to the same time last year.
When the quarter was compared to 10 years ago, petrol prices in the North Island, excluding Auckland and Wellington, were up 0.2 per cent.
The figures were from point-on-point comparisons and prices have fluctuated during that time, she said.
Between the June 2016 quarter and now, prices were up 20 per cent nationally, and 21 per cent in the North Island excluding Auckland and Wellington.
Cash Dine, a motorist spoken to by the Bay of Plenty Times, said his family needed to sacrifice "basic stuff, like food" as the price of petrol continued to rise.
"We try not to because we've got the kids, but sometimes it's hard... gas is a big factor."
It costs the family $130 a week to fill their tank.
On top of this, all trips - both big and small - need to be planned in advance, he said.
"I can't just go and do something, I have to plan to do X-amount of things at that one time instead of going back and forth. We can't afford to these days."
His children went to Oropi School and needed to put them on the bus more to save on petrol, he said.
Ian Tichborne said the price of diesel was "ridiculous" and his family had to pick and choose when to leave town or go hunting.
He said asking to split the cost of petrol when going away with friends or family felt rude, and he was finding himself missing out on things to avoid the cost.
On top of this, he paid road-user charges and said it was felt as though he was paying double.
Rotorua Budget Advisory Services manager Pakanui Tuhura said many people were minimising their travel, and saving for pre-planned or necessary travel, such as tangi.
He said if costs continued to rise to what they were a few years ago, people would have to "tighten their belts and weigh up their options".
Tauranga Housing Advocacy Trust board chairwoman Carol Heena said petrol was only used to get to work, and "can't miss" appointments like doctors and MSD, and people "often" carpooled to the supermarket.
She said for those on low incomes, it was another struggle people were juggling.
"Petrol has become an essential cost, just as rent, food, mortgages, electricity. The impact really affects those on low incomes."
A Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment media spokesman said the major factors contributing to the price at the pump were the cost of crude from Dubai and the exchange rate.
Crude oil prices have risen from NZ$29.33 in April last year to NZ$104.86 for the week ending July 30.
Last year, the Government passed the Fuel Industry Act 2020 following a market study by the Commerce Commission which found several shortcomings in the competitiveness of fuel markets in New Zealand which hurt the pockets of motorists.
The act - which comes into force in stages, starting this month - sets up a regulatory regime for fuel with the purpose of promoting competition in engine fuel markets for the long-term benefit of consumers.
Some provisions in the act come into force on Thursday, namely terminal gate pricing, wholesale contract rules, and a dispute resolution scheme.
Last month, the Commerce Commission outlined their role and expectations of fuel businesses ahead of the regime starting this week in an open letter.
The commission can seek court-imposed penalties of up to $5 million if businesses do not comply with these new rules.
From February, petrol stations need to display premium fuel prices on forecourt price boards and the businesses need to disclose key information to the commission to help monitor and report on the competitive performance of fuel markets.
A spokesman for the commission said the market study found that regional variation in pricing usually reflected areas with more competition.
Neither the commission nor MBIE set prices, and the spokesman said this was controlled by market forces.
The Ministry of Social Development group general manager client service delivery Kay Read said they could help with petrol prices depending on individual circumstances.
Payments generally were not approved for everyday petrol purchases, however, petrol expenses may be approved under various support mechanisms such as disability allowance, temporary additional support, special needs grants, recoverable assistance payments, she said.
Some examples where petrol costs could be approved include attending funeral or tangihanga, medical appointments and counselling, being stranded away from where a client usually lives.
In the majority of cases, clients are required to pay back funds approved to purchase petrol.
Approved payments are loaded on to payment cards, and are an advance payment of a client's benefit. Repayments are then set up to begin deducting out of the client's benefit. See: https://www.workandincome.govt.nz/on-a-benefit/payments/payment-cards.html