By Callum Ludwig
The fuel excise discount introduced at the start of April is coming to an end on Thursday 29 September and will likely mark a concerning return to sky-high petrol prices as Australians deal with a number of cost-of-living pressures.
The projected price rises could mean that some of the communities most vulnerable are unable to afford to transport themselves.
LinC General Manager Julie Szabo said LinC gets a lot of requests for petrol as it is, let aloe with price increases.
“It’s going to have a large impact, people are already struggling financially. Our area has very limited public transport, and so people are extremely reliant on their cars and for anyone on a low income, petrol is always an issue,” she said.
“We do help with all types of fuel as much as we possibly can, and while we can’t offer transport anymore, Eastern Volunteers offers transport services for anyone over 65 and with a disability.”
The excise tax discount saw 22 cents cut from the price of fuel for providers, which in turn could be passed on to consumers.
Ms Szabo said it is an extremely important issue that affects people on a day to day basis.
“We have people with illnesses who need to get to hospital, or families with kids to get to a school who need petrol. Not only that, but we value the social connection self-transport provides, but have to prioritise those with appointments or educational needs,” she said.
“We try to help with petrol, but also by ensuring the programs we run are local to where people live, to help keep people connected with their community and so they don’t have to travel as far.”
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will be closely monitoring retail prices to ensure the excise is passed on fairly, ramping up monitoring of anti-competitive behaviour and analysing prices daily.
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the Federal Government are under no illusions this will be difficult for people.
“Fuel prices in most parts of the country at the moment are now around 50 cents a litre below the peak recorded in July,” he said.
“Industry estimates that there [will] be more than 700 million litres of lower excise fuel in the system when the fuel excise is reintroduced. This is 700 million reasons why the price should not shoot up by the full 23 cents on the night that the excise relief ends.”
The ACCC expects that there will be no abnormal retail price increases in the days leading up to, on the day of, or after the reintroduction of the full rate of fuel excise.
