Petrol and diesel prices could soar towards all-time record levels due to the rising cost of oil, the RAC has warned.
The motoring organisation said average prices had risen to 126.62p a litre for petrol and 129.41p for diesel, the highest seen since 2014.
The organisation predicts a further 2p rise during the next fortnight after the cost of oil hit $80 a barrel for the first time since November 2014.
The RAC adds that one oil chief has speculated oil prices could yet hit $100 a barrel – a price last seen in August 2014 – meaning fuel prices could rise to 141p a litre for petrol and 144p a litre for diesel.
That would be close to the record level seen in April 2012, when average prices were 142.48p a litre for petrol and 147.93p a litre for diesel.
RAC spokesman Simon Williams said: “Fuel prices are now at their highest since mid-October 2014, which means we are paying 25p more a litre than we were at the start of 2016 when oil crashed to $26 a barrel and the average price of both fuels was around 101p.
“And the worst may be still yet to come. If the price of oil goes up towards $100 a barrel we will very likely see a return to the dark days of April 2012 when petrol and diesel hit record highs.
“Even though the oil price was higher then (around $120 a barrel), today’s weaker exchange rate will lead to similar prices at the pumps.”
