Fuel price discussion thread (was ‘chaos’)

In the southeast near Medway. One place I went by today had no fuel. I need to try and fill up the Boxster today, its had 50~ miles in it for the past 2 weeks since this all started and I need it for a longish trip later this week (The Lambocanto that has a full tank is out of action at the moment...) .Was hoping by now this mess would be over, seems like nothings changed down here.

Going to try a few supermarkets just before lunch time, hate to think I have to drive around like a **** looking for fuel, ******* stupid country.

Edit - Managed to get £30 worth of V-power after queuing for 15mins, just under half a tank so its better then nothing.
 
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adam cool dude said:
Please go drive a HGV for a day and come back and say it is low skilled. If it was low skilled and easy everyone would be doing it as the money isn't actually that bad in the grand scheme of things.
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It is a low skilled job even after this Govt relaxed the definition of a skilled job from being one requiring a degree to now one requiring A levels or equivalent. That doesn't mean it's not a demanding job, or doesn't have responsibilities or not great working conditions, but it isn't a "skilled" job. You can get a HGV licence in 8-10 weeks, the bulk of that being the waiting time for the paperwork to be processed. The actual assessments for the licence is what, about 5 days and a minimum of 16 hours.

Cutting cabbage in the field is a "skill" (especially to not remove a few fingers at the same time :p) and the people who are good at it will far out perform people without any skill, even more so than any differences between HGV drivers and it has worse working conditions than a HGV driver, but it will still always be classed as an unskilled or low skill job.
 
lordrobs said:
I'm stubbornly sticking to my usual buying pattern which means I haven't filled up yet since the "crisis" started.

My dad called me to say there was fuel and zero queue at a local BP last nigh but I refused to make a pointless trip out just to buy fuel. Sainsburys had fuel with minimal queue this morning but I've still got 1/3 of a tank so I thought I'll leave it until tomorrow which should mean I can do my midweek work trip out and back without having to fill up...

...this will of course come back to bite me when tomorrow is back to mile long queue chaos :rolleyes:



Don't forget this whole "crisis" only came about because a dozen or so stations across the whole of the country run dry.

They just need to get the ripple in the demand ironed out in the short term. There is obviously a longer term issue though on the HGV driver issue in general that will need to be addressed.
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Personally I blame media sensationalism to drive clicks and sell papers. The more sensational the headline the more they get to milk the ‘crisis’ for longer. A few stations nationally out due to driver shortage was amped up to a National shortage by the media. Then the government got involved and things started snowballing. The media really need to look at the headlines they run.
 
Up around this way the odds seem good, around 50% or higher. No real queues on the drive into work this morning, in fact the roads were empty but totally forget to even look at petrol stations but guessing they were open and business as usual.

Went Oulton Park on Saturday, upon leaving I needed fuel, first shell station had nothing near the circuit, the next one a bit down the road had everything and the price was normal at 150.9p per litre for Vpower, no queues either.
 
Yesterday I tried to get petrol for my bike, but I gave up...
8 petrol stations, 6 closed, 1 had diesel only and the last one had a queue of 36 cars (yes I counted)
 
In Aberdeenshire, there doesn't seem to be any issues at all. I filled up at the local Tesco at lunchtime yesterday, and there was only one other car filling up out of the 12 pumps available. The only fuel that wasn't available was the E5 Super Unleaded. I drove past about 6 or 7 petrol startion yesterday on a drive into Aberdeen and all seemed similar with no queues, and just a few cars filling up. I did hear today that a couple of the busier Shell petrol stations near the main road south had ran out, but almost every other petrol station has fuel available at the moment.
 
Back to normal around me now, every station I passed on way to work has fuel and no longer limiting people.
 
200sols said:
Still bad here. Its even made the local rag.
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Its been all over the local rag for the best part of a week here

https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19622336.brighton-sussex-drivers-faced-fuel-crisis-weekend/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19621638.recap-fuel-queues-continue-across-county-10th-day/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19617869.recap-fuel-queues-continue-eighth-day-across-sussex/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19610388.watch-hundreds-queue-fuel-old-shoreham-road/
etc.

Which is funny because the local BBC news has given up on it entirely and pretending it doesn't exist. Either that or where its broadcast from is nowhere near the SE which wouldn't surprise me seems to be more interested in London than anything local here.
 
Blackjack Davy said:
Its been all over the local rag for the best part of a week here

https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19622336.brighton-sussex-drivers-faced-fuel-crisis-weekend/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19621638.recap-fuel-queues-continue-across-county-10th-day/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19617869.recap-fuel-queues-continue-eighth-day-across-sussex/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19610388.watch-hundreds-queue-fuel-old-shoreham-road/
etc.

Which is funny because the local BBC news has given up on it entirely and pretending it doesn't exist. Either that or where its broadcast from is nowhere near the SE which wouldn't surprise me seems to be more interested in London than anything local here.
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The Esso and BP on the way out seem empty with tape around them, I guess they are just selling coffee etc.
I topped off my Tank at Sainsburys in Newhaven which only had 2 pumps with Diesal didn't look at the Asda. A27 fuel stations Toward Newhaven looked like Chaos earlier today. I'm just hoping people stay savy and avoid crashes.
 
Don't want to flex but I was down to a quarter of a tank and since I was round the corner to the petrol station I thought I may as well get some. Just one other car was there.
 
Minimal queues at around 8:30 this morning, took the dog out at lunch and the queues were massive again - this is at my local sainsburys, the shell nearby is still empty.
 
Freakbro said:
It is a low skilled job even after this Govt relaxed the definition of a skilled job from being one requiring a degree to now one requiring A levels or equivalent. That doesn't mean it's not a demanding job, or doesn't have responsibilities or not great working conditions, but it isn't a "skilled" job. You can get a HGV licence in 8-10 weeks, the bulk of that being the waiting time for the paperwork to be processed. The actual assessments for the licence is what, about 5 days and a minimum of 16 hours.

Cutting cabbage in the field is a "skill" (especially to not remove a few fingers at the same time :p) and the people who are good at it will far out perform people without any skill, even more so than any differences between HGV drivers and it has worse working conditions than a HGV driver, but it will still always be classed as an unskilled or low skill job.
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Your post reads as written by someone who’s never driven an HGV tbh…

I find it odd that you deem cutting cabbages a skill yet being able to safely handle an articulated truck (which is a little more dangerous to the public I’d say) is not? :p

The “skill” is sweet FA to do with obtaining the license, it’s acquired through years of experience, the government are rushing new license holders through the system but there’s already a huge proportion of new passes who quickly realise they can’t do the job and quickly Jack it in, as I’ve said before, obtaining the license does not make you a professional driver, far from it.

Many new passes do not go onto a career in the industry, simply because they realise they are not cut out for it, just as many car license holders can’t drive for **** it’s the same for LGV category holders, and that’s before they realise that to get the higher wages banded about they have to work 60-70+ hour weeks, unsocial hours, are generally treated like crap by both delivery points and other road users and appreciate that they are governed by a somewhat draconian enforcement regime that is out to get you at every opportunity.

The training to get your HGV/LGV is expensive, as is the periodic (and arguably pointless) training required to keep it.


In other news, traveling south on the M6 this afternoon, I noticed Knutsford services was completely closed and Stafford services have no HGV fuel….
 
Ad_Augendae said:
I'm just hoping people stay savy and avoid crashes.
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Theres a serious hazard with cars trying to get past queues when its only a two lane road and people pulling out of petrol stations without even looking I guess they're so delirious from finding fuel they've forgotten all road sense and people doing U-turns on the dual carriageway because they don't want to be stuck in the queue... I don't even.

Scania said:
Your post reads as written by someone who’s never driven an HGV tbh…

I find it odd that you deem cutting cabbages a skill yet being able to safely handle an articulated truck (which is a little more dangerous to the public I’d say) is not? :p

The “skill” is sweet FA to do with obtaining the license, it’s acquired through years of experience, the government are rushing new license holders through the system but there’s already a huge proportion of new passes who quickly realise they can’t do the job and quickly Jack it in, as I’ve said before, obtaining the license does not make you a professional driver, far from it.

Many new passes do not go onto a career in the industry, simply because they realise they are not cut out for it, just as many car license holders can’t drive for **** it’s the same for LGV category holders, and that’s before they realise that to get the higher wages banded about they have to work 60-70+ hour weeks, unsocial hours, are generally treated like crap by both delivery points and other road users and appreciate that they are governed by a somewhat draconian enforcement regime that is out to get you at every opportunity.

The training to get your HGV/LGV is expensive, as is the periodic (and arguably pointless) training required to keep it.


In other news, traveling south on the M6 this afternoon, I noticed Knutsford services was completely closed and Stafford services have no HGV fuel….
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"Skill" equates to waving an academic qualification on a piece of paper around all too much these days, on the continent its a different world they get respect there with decent truck stop diners and people are pleased to see them because they value them. As one interviewed Polish driver said, who wants to come to the UK with no facilities to pee in a bottle on the M25?
 
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Blackjack Davy said:
Its been all over the local rag for the best part of a week here

https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19622336.brighton-sussex-drivers-faced-fuel-crisis-weekend/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19621638.recap-fuel-queues-continue-across-county-10th-day/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19617869.recap-fuel-queues-continue-eighth-day-across-sussex/
https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/19610388.watch-hundreds-queue-fuel-old-shoreham-road/
etc.

Which is funny because the local BBC news has given up on it entirely and pretending it doesn't exist. Either that or where its broadcast from is nowhere near the SE which wouldn't surprise me seems to be more interested in London than anything local here.
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Same up in the North West with the BBC, pretending it never happened since early last week. Couple of days later the availability was noticeably better locally.

Odds are the BBC got the wrath of Dorries and stopped reporting due to the suggestions it was creating panic buying.
 
Still bad down in Ashford, Kent. One of the big Tesco's is only opening 11pm - 5am for fuel. Otherwise it blocks access to the actual shop.

Utter madness.
 
Still not normal here in Oxfordshire, today there is fuel available with minimal (but still a short) queue at one station at 141.9ppl, but the “main” large garage is totally dry again.
It’s been quite a pain, I resorted to buying fuel at around 11pm the other day and still had to queue, although i think the issue has eased slightly since then.
 
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