A supermarket fuel card gives drivers access to fill up at a range of different supermarket sites nationwide, including Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco. For fleets who operate locally, it can be a handy way to keep down fuel costs. We receive a number of frequently asked questions about how supermarket fuel cards work, which we will answer in this blog post.
Q. Is supermarket fuel any good?
A. A common concern is that supermarket fuel is sub-par and damages cars long-term. It’s understandable that the lower price of fuel is associated with lower quality. However, this isn’t necessarily the case. All fuel distributed in the UK is regulated by national and international standards, whether that’s at a branded fuel station or supermarket. Fuel stations all use the same base fuel, whether that’s at your local Shell or Tesco. So, for the same fuel quality, filling up at a supermarket could save you up to 5p per litre compared with filling up at independent fuel stations, without making a difference to your car. It’s true that some branded fuel stations add extra chemicals to their fuel for lubrication and efficiency, but regulated fuels without these additives are not known to cause damage.
Q. Will I still collect supermarket points when using a fuel card?
A. This depends on the provider of the fuel card so it’s worth checking with them directly. If you have a Fuelmate Supermarket fuel card you can collect supermarket reward points as normal when purchasing fuel from a supermarket.
Q. Why is fuel cheaper at supermarkets?
A. There are a few reasons why supermarket fuel is generally cheaper than at bigger brand fuel stations. Firstly, supermarkets have the buying power to negotiate prices with wholesalers. They don’t all necessarily have long-term contracts with wholesalers and can shop around to secure the lowest price. Another reason is that fuel isn’t a supermarket’s primary source of revenue. Because supermarkets make most of their profit on household items, they can afford to lower profit margins on each litre of fuel.
Q. What are the benefits of a supermarket fuel card?
A. If you or your employees tend to do the majority of driving in towns and cities, a supermarket fuel card is extra convenient and cuts down time otherwise spent driving out of the way to find a fuel station. Although supermarket fuel cards don’t usually give you any discount on the price at pump, as we’ve established, fuel from supermarkets is generally the best value.
As well as being cheaper, sometimes it’s just easier to top up your fuel at a supermarket en-route, rather than driving to a standalone fuel station before or after popping to the shop while on the road. Most supermarket fuel cards will also come with online account management and consolidated invoicing which cuts down admin time. There is also an added security benefit of pin-enabled fuel cards and less need to carry cash when paying for fuel.
We hope this answers some of your questions regarding supermarket fuel cards but if you have further queries, read our Complete Guide to Fuel Cards. Our friendly team is also happy to help. For a more in-depth look at the benefits of fuel cards for businesses, read our previous blog post or compare fuel cards online with our helpful tool.
