According to Simon Williams from the RAC's Fuel Watch team, fuel prices started to rise again in July 2019 after dipping during June. The two factors influencing the rise are the pound losing value against the dollar and rising wholesale oil prices. Although prices haven't yet crept up to the high point they reached at the start of June, could continue to rise.

Williams commented: “Sadly July saw a return to rising pump prices making the respite of June all too brief. While there were only relatively small rises in both petrol and diesel, the situation might have been far worse if the drop in the value of the pound had combined with the higher mid-month oil prices. And, of course, this could still very easily prove to be the case if the pound doesn’t recover in the next few weeks.

“Drivers can only hope we don’t see the nasty combination of a rising oil price and a falling pound. If we do, August could prove to be a very costly month on the UK’s roads. This could easily lead to petrol going above the 2019 high of 130.67p seen at the start of June and diesel exceeding the year’s high point of 135.54p at the end of May.”

So, to save money, we recommend avoiding motorway service stations and heading for a nearby supermarket instead. You might also use one of the popular smartphone apps that can find the cheapest fuel near you.

Regional fuel price comparison:

Region	Av petrol price	Region	Av diesel price
Northern Ireland	126.8	Northern Ireland	129.3
Wales	128.2	North East	130.8
North East	128.5	Wales	131.5
Yorkshire	128.8	Yorkshire	131.5
North West	128.9	North West	131.8
South West	129.1	Scotland	131.9
East	129.2	London	132.1
East Midlands	129.2	West Midlands	132.1
West Midlands	129.3	East Midlands	132.4
Scotland	129.3	South West	132.4
London	129.5	East	132.8
South East	129.9	South East	133.0

Regional prices are from the RAC Fuel Watch report for June 2019 and are based on Experian Catalist data from 3 to 30 June 2019 (pump prices).

True MPG: most efficient SUVs 2019

The official government MPG figures published in sales brochures can tempt you into buying a particular car, but those results are often misleading. Fortunately, What Car?'s True MPG tests reveal what sort of fuel economy you can expect in the real world.

To ensure accuracy and repeatability, we use strictly controlled laboratory conditions, but the tests are based on a real-world route that takes in town, rural and motorway driving.

The results reflect what's achievable if you’re driving gently and sticking to speed limits but aren’t resorting to any unrealistically slow acceleration or special 'hypermiling' techniques.

Find out more about how we test for True MPG

Below we count down the 10 most efficient SUVs we've tested – plus we reveal the one that used the most fuel.

True MPG: most efficient SUVs 2019

Find out more about how we test for True MPG

The 10 most fuel efficient SUVs

10. Suzuki Vitara 1.6

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