New analysis shows that drivers faced record monthly fuel price hikes in March, driven by the Iran oil crisis.

The RAC said the average price of a litre of petrol at UK forecourts rose by 20p from 132.8p on March 1 to 152.8p on the last day of the month, The Caspian Post reports, citing foreign media.

Drivers of diesel vehicles suffered an even bigger price hike, with the average cost of a litre of the fuel soaring by 40p from 142.4p to 182.8p over the same period.

The increases surpassed the biggest monthly jumps of 17p for petrol in June 2022 and 22p for diesel in March 2022, which followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Despite last month’s record rises, average fuel prices are still below the all-time highs of summer 2022 when petrol peaked at 191.5p per litre and diesel at 199.0p per litre.

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “March has been truly unprecedented - fuel prices have never risen this fast in a single month.

“The increases drivers have had to endure in March 2026 far exceed those seen in the early days of the war in Ukraine.