Fuel Surcharge

No one can have failed to notice that every time they fill their car up as it costs more and more. As consumers we tend to mentally offset the higher prices against the convenience of being able to transport ourselves when and where we wish. Only every now and then are fuel prices placed at the forefront of the public’s mind when dramatic newspaper headlines or pictures of strike bound holiday makers focus attention on this issue.

For anyone who distributes goods on a daily basis fuel prices have a direct cost implication on the transport movement. Fuel now represents up to 22% (April 2020) of Shipley Transport Services operating costs – we use over 45,000 litres per week.

Manufacturers frequently quote their customers fixed prices and we understand that constant increases due to fuel surcharges do erode margins. However road transport is no longer the cheap element in the supply chain. Not only does fuel cost more we actually pay for diesel on 30 day rolling terms but we receive settlement of our invoices on 30 days end of month terms (at best) effectively acting as the Government’s Tax Collectors at our own expense.

You may think that Shipley Transport Services as a company should absorb all these increased costs. This however would mean we would have to reduce the amount we spend on maintenance, insurance and health & safety and halt any investment in training, IT resources, vehicles or other equipment. We would not be able to offer the high level of service that our customers have come to expect from us. Within a very short period we would find ourselves in a downward spiral from which it would be very difficult to recover.

The reality is that we have absorbed as much as we possibly can. We have reviewed procedures, applied innovative systems and we strongly believe that we are a lean and efficient business. We think that all hauliers who will not compromise the integrity of their service and who intend to still be in business next year and the years to come must impose fuel surcharges or recover their increased costs accordingly. What we can do is ensure that our customers understand the implications for future haulage costs so that they can budget realistic figures and additionally that they in turn can educate their customers about this topic.