Cost of a tank of petrol falls £18 in four years: Average litre of unleaded down by 26% helping to reduce prices across the high street 

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Families are enjoying a living standards boost from lower petrol prices that have helped deliver three years of falling shop prices, it is claimed today.

Drivers are saving £18.57 every time they fill up their car compared to when petrol prices peaked in the spring of 2012, according to a new fuel calculator from the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

This equates to a saving of more than £45 a month for someone who has a daily 60-mile round-trip commute to work.

Petrol prices have dropped considerably since the spring of 2012, saving motorists a small fortune

The ONS charts how changes in volatile oil, petrol and diesel prices affect spending power and living standards.

Significantly, the lower cost of petrol has brought down prices across the high street, with separate figures published today suggesting shop prices have been falling for three years.

And this continuing record of low inflation means there is little or no chance of the Bank of England putting up interest rates in the near future.

The ONS fuel cost calculator makes clear that households with a car are significantly better off today compared to just four years ago.

The price of unleaded hit a high of 137.02p a litre in the spring of 2012 and diesel peaked at 143.08p.

The latest quarterly figures from the ONS show unleaded has plunged by 26per cent since then, coming down by 35.4p a litre to 101.62p in the first three months of this year.

The fuel calculator states it costs £55.89 to fill the 55 litre tank on a medium sized car, which is a saving of £18.57 compared to 2012.

The website also calculates the savings that drivers are making per journey, whether it is a daily commute or a trip to the seaside on a Bank Holiday.

The cost of a 60-mile round trip comes in at £6.86 today, which is a saving of £2.28 compared with the peak in 2012.

Someone who did this as a daily commute is saving £11.40 a week or £45.60 a month.

The website also provides figures for diesel cars, where the savings are even greater.

The average price of diesel is down by some 27 per cent over the four years, which equates to a fall of 38.1p a litre to 101.98p.

As a result, the cost of filling a 55 litre medium tank on a diesel car has come down by £21.89 to £56.11.

The net effect is that the cost of a daily 60 mile commute in a diesel car has fallen by £2.69 to £6.89 - a saving of £13.45 a week or £53.80 a month.

A man is pictured filling up his car with unleaded petrol. The cost of a 60-mile round trip comes in at £6.86 today, which is a saving of £2.28 compared with the peak in 2012

The ONS fuel calculator also provides figures for smaller cars with a 40 litre tank and large cars with tanks capable of holding 65 litres.

As well as putting more money into the pockets of drivers, the low cost of fuel has been the driving force behind the low inflation rate where the official figure has been running close to zero for more than a year.

In fact, a study published by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) today shows shop prices are down by 1.7per cent on a year ago – and have been falling for three years.

It said the price of non-food items is down by 2.9per cent and there was a marginal rise of 0.1per cent on food.

A raft of sales over the Bank Holiday, partly triggered by the demise of BHS, are predicted to ensure prices do not rise in the coming months.

BRC chief executive, Helen Dickinson, said: ‘This month marks an important anniversary for retailers and shoppers alike.

‘We’ve seen three years of falling shop prices, with prices falling by 1.7per cent in April compared to a year earlier.

‘The 36 consecutive months of price falls is being driven by intense competition across the industry.

‘It has knock on implications for margins and profitability given the combination of continued investment in digital and rising cost pressures.

‘Non-food prices marked the 37th month of deflation, with prices falling 2.9per cent during the month. Excellent bargains were to be found in clothing and footwear, electricals and furniture and floorcovering.

‘Clothing and footwear saw a significant fall of 7.1per cent, highlighting the heavy discounting in the run up to the summer season.’

A man pumps diesel into his car. The average price of diesel is down by some 27 per cent over the four years, which equates to a fall of 38.1p a litre to 101.98p

Retail expert, Mike Watkins, of Nielsen, said: ‘The underlying trend in shop prices is downwards with continued price cutting by supermarkets which is driving deflation.

‘Further discounts may also be necessary on the high street as the cool spring has impacted the sales of many retailers, and an increase in the levels of promotion over the next few weeks to drive footfall is not out of the question.’

While fuel prices are down significantly from their peak, they have begun to edge up again in recent weeks. The latest figures from the AA put petrol at 107.33p a litre and diesel at 106.91p.

An ONS spokesman said: ‘Fuel prices have risen slightly within the last few months, but the price of fuel remains relatively low.

‘Factored in with recent low inflation, this has helped boost the UK household’s average real wage and its spending power.

‘The proportion of all retail spending on fuel has gone down since 2010, partly as a result of a drop in fuel prices.’