Hauliers are being urged to lobby their MP for an essential user rebate to tackle high fuel prices as ongoing pressure caused by conflict in the Middle East looks likely to roll into its third month.
The RHA drafted a letter for operators to send to their local MP demanding support from the Chancellor as soaring costs threatened to wipe out wafer thin margins.
The letter said: “Diesel makes up around 30% of the operating cost of running an HGV.
“When the fuel price goes up in crisis moments like this, the extra cost has to be either passed on to customers – driving up inflation – or absorbed by the business, which has caused over 1,000 companies in the sector to liquidate in the last two years, a record number.
“The average profit margin for a business like mine is less than 2% and the industry is highly competitive. When costs increase for our sector, it has knock-on effects for the rest of the economy.”
The business group said 470 operators had signed a letter sent to the Chancellor last week urging her to scrap a plan to increase fuel duty in September.
The RHA reminded the Treasury that countries such as Ireland, Italy, France and Spain had introduced targeted support to transport operators amid the US and Israel’s war with Iran.
Petrol and diesel prices have risen significantly since the end of February when strikes on the Middle East country began and Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz.
The blockade resulted in higher costs for fuel and fertiliser, both critical elements of food production.
Sapna Amlani, supply chain industry practice lead at Moody’s Analytics, said: “When flows through a critical corridor like Hormuz become constrained or uncertain, the effects are rarely contained.
“In Europe, this is already translating into rising input costs across energy‑intensive sectors such as chemicals, manufacturing and transport, at a time when demand remains fragile and businesses have limited capacity to absorb or pass on those costs.”
Companies can access the RHA’s drafted letter here.
