High fuel prices have recently caused motorists great concern. Many therefore placed their hopes in the tank discount that has been in effect since Wednesday. But does this really lead to relief at the gas stations? Scientists from IW Cologne have now checked this.

Inflation has only known one direction for months: upwards. The inflation rate is being driven primarily by high energy prices. This is particularly evident at the petrol stations – much to the annoyance of motorists.

In order to remedy the situation, the federal government introduced a tank discount, which has been in effect since Wednesday. This relieves the liter of diesel with eleven cents and the liter of petrol with 30 cents. But now the question: Does the tank discount reach the consumer in full?

Researchers at the German Economic Institute (IW) have now investigated this question. To do this, they analyzed the fuel prices at 14,423 petrol stations on the day before and after the introduction of the discount. If the prices at the gas station have fallen by at least eleven or 30 cents, the discount is considered to have been “passed on”.

As the evaluation shows, the majority of petrol stations have done this. Diesel drivers in particular could benefit from this. Around 71 percent of all petrol stations have reduced the price of diesel by at least eleven cents. On the other hand, the full discount on the liter of Super E5 or E10 was only granted at about half of the petrol stations.

However, it is questionable whether these price reductions will last. As the ADAC announced on Thursday, the prices of diesel and Super E10 rose again shortly after the introduction of the tank discount. On Thursday morning, a liter of diesel already cost 3.7 cents and Super E10 3.3 cents more than the day before.

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