ISLANDERS may have to launch their own campaign if they want to force petrol prices down. The Consumer Group has said it was unlikely to take an active role in putting pressure on retailers to drop prices.
The States has said that pump prices were too high in comparison with the UK and Jersey and Commerce and Employment was hoping that commercial pressure rather than intervention by law would see prices fall.
Jersey’s Consumer Council played an important role in monitoring and publicising prices in that island.
But Consumer Group chairman Roy Bisson did not see that as the organisation’s role.
‘We are going to encourage the availability of information, like having price boards and publishing information,’ he said.
‘The list that appeared in the Guernsey Press will have certainly stirred up people’s thoughts about it.’
The news could prove disappointing to some motorists because a campaign by its Jersey equivalent helped push petrol prices down considerably.
Jersey Consumer Council officer Suzette Hase reckoned some people could save up to £160 per year by shopping around.
‘That’s enough to pay for your car insurance,’ she said.
The JCC launched a petrol price watch more than two years ago, publishing a comparison chart each month.
Ms Hase said there was a difference of up to £4 a fill-up between stations and heralded the campaign a success.
‘It’s definitely highlighted awareness and with that heightened awareness, people are becoming better informed about where to buy their petrol,’ she said.
Ms Hase said that prices in Jersey had fallen by 3p or 4p per litre since the review started.
‘We’ve had excellent feedback,’ she said.
‘People trust what we print - no one questions our prices. And it hasn’t led to any closures - nothing as dramatic as that from a drop of a couple of pence.’
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