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UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

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Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#111

Post by 2Gkashmiri »

alexfoo wrote: post #86

Decisions about fuel purchases are often irrational, much like many food purchases or generic medicines. I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality. There are weird status things going on with purchases like this. Only the other day my father refused to buy some branded paracetamol be…

In India, we have generic medicine paracetamol for 20 bucks while branded one is like 5-10 times that.

Sadly many people feel that because they are sick, they need to spend as much money as possible because that would give them best shot at getting healthly.

I once asked a guy "why don't you buy that cheap medicine. Its the same and will save you money" but they were like "naa. Its cheap. What would be inside it. I need to pay top money for best medicine"

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#112

Post by [deleted] »

alexfoo wrote: post #86

Decisions about fuel purchases are often irrational, much like many food purchases or generic medicines. I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality. There are weird status things going on with purchases like this. Only the other day my father refused to buy some branded paracetamol be…

[deleted]

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#113

Post by thegrim000 »

alexfoo wrote: post #86

Decisions about fuel purchases are often irrational, much like many food purchases or generic medicines. I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality. There are weird status things going on with purchases like this. Only the other day my father refused to buy some branded paracetamol be…

>> I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality

- "Top Tier gas contains higher detergent levels to prevent engine carbon"

- "Major brands use specific additives that enhance performance, while "no-name" or discount stations might only meet the minimum EPA-required detergent levels"

- "The condition of a station's underground storage tanks affects quality"

- "For the best engine performance and longevity, choosing Top Tier-certified gasoline is generally recommended."

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#114

Post by aaronrobinson »

You need a mix of price, availability and trust. I just head for the nearest Sainsbury’s. They have. Reputation to protect, I can do my shopping at the same time and their prices are competitive. I just wouldn’t go to the cheapest place unless it was a hire car.

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#116

Post by Nursie »

aucisson_masque wrote: post #90
alexfoo wrote: post #86

Decisions about fuel purchases are often irrational, much like many food purchases or generic medicines. I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality. There are weird status things going on with purchases like this. Only the other day my father refused to buy some branded paracetamol be…

In France we had such api available for decades, many apps are using it and there are a lot of people using them. I don't know if your experience is from British people but it looks like they just didn't have the mean to effectively compare fuel prices. Once they do, there is a significant part of the British drivers that will most likely be using it.

This is exactly it.

We have a system here in Western Australia and people use it a lot: fuelwatch.wa.gov.au

I think it's exactly that, the UK has never had this so people there either choose by brand or just convenience. But since moving to WA I've found that it's really easy to have a quick look when I notice I need to fill up, then I can head to the cheapest station nearby, and the difference can be in the range of 10-15%, occasionally 20%.

In a country where fuel is as expensive as it is in the UK, people are going to use that.

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#117

Post by Nursie »

maffyoo wrote: post #12

When see things like this, I always think of the Chinese proverb "An inch of time is worth an inch of gold, but it is hard to buy one inch of time with one inch of gold" Which always says to me that its not worth it just use the quickest option Take the example drcongo posted: "Yesterday I had to drive to a nearby town, just 20 minutes away, and noticed that every single petrol station there was a good 5p per litre c…

That's an extreme case though, and not what this sort of thing is aimed at.

Here in Perth, Western Australia, it's common for pump prices to vary significantly even within a small radius. But they're all on https://www.fuelwatch.wa.gov.au/ so you can see what the price is ahead of time.

If it's 14c cheaper per litre (coming up for 10%) to go 500m one direction vs 500m another direction, which one are you going to choose?

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#118

Post by Nursie »

noAnswer wrote: post #77
tietjens wrote: post #68

Last year there was a study done in Germany. The gas station prices change an average of 14 times a day. This really shocked me. I wonder if this is normal practice most other places.

It's 22 times a day, according to the Federal Cartel Office. https://www.bundeskartellamt.de/DE/Aufgaben/Markttransparenz...

Here in western Australia, they must publish the price for the day by 2pm the day before, and cannot change it.

Definitely very different.

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#119

Post by [deleted] »

2Gkashmiri wrote: post #111
alexfoo wrote: post #86

Decisions about fuel purchases are often irrational, much like many food purchases or generic medicines. I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality. There are weird status things going on with purchases like this. Only the other day my father refused to buy some branded paracetamol be…

In India, we have generic medicine paracetamol for 20 bucks while branded one is like 5-10 times that. Sadly many people feel that because they are sick, they need to spend as much money as possible because that would give them best shot at getting healthly. I once asked a guy "why don't you buy that cheap medicine. Its the same and will save you money" but they were like "naa. Its cheap. What would be inside it. I n…

[deleted]

Re: UK government launches fuel forecourt price API

#120

Post by Glawen »

aucisson_masque wrote: post #90
alexfoo wrote: post #86

Decisions about fuel purchases are often irrational, much like many food purchases or generic medicines. I know someone who avoids their local petrol station that is 10p/litre cheaper than most others nearby (within a mile or so) as they think the cheaper fuel must be lower quality. There are weird status things going on with purchases like this. Only the other day my father refused to buy some branded paracetamol be…

In France we had such api available for decades, many apps are using it and there are a lot of people using them. I don't know if your experience is from British people but it looks like they just didn't have the mean to effectively compare fuel prices. Once they do, there is a significant part of the British drivers that will most likely be using it.

Yes but the real feature that makes it viable, is that petrol station in France can change price only once a day. I forgot how it works in the UK, but in Germany they change wildly depending on the hour in the day. For example they show low price in the morning, so that workers who are late for work notice it and fill on the way back, only to find a price 10-20cents higher at 17h.
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