READERS' FOR UM:Have your say

“What is going on with petrol prices?” asked Pricewatch reader Tony O’Rourke, the day before the Budget was released.

“All the outlets in south Kildare seem to have put up their prices over the weekend by a uniform 5 cent per litre. Is this really justified? I know the euro was weak against the dollar last week but has since recovered somewhat.”

He has a suspicion there was “some sharp practice in advance of the Budget. Or am I being too cynical? In general, there seems to be no rhyme or reason to petrol prices. They can go up and down again in the space of a few days and there seems to be absolutely no regulation or rationale at all.”

He points out that this increase, coupled with the 4 cent increase in a litre of petrol which was announced in last week’s Budget, have pushed prices over €1.40 a litre . “I know excise duty is very high but it would be great to get an explanation of some kind to justify these increases.”

Where better to go for an explanation of fuel prices than Conor Faughnan of the AA. He says it is definitely true that petrol prices have gone up over the past two weeks, “by a good five or six cent per litre”, and that’s on top of the Budget increase. He adds that the increases have been seen around the country. “I don’t think it is the individual garages, most of them are on wafer-thin margins. That general rise in prices has, in fact, happened all over northern Europe and is particularly noticeable in the UK. It appears that the cold snap has caused a bit of irrational concern about the price of the refined product, not oil but the refined product. At the moment, there is a little bit of paranoia about supply and that is driving up the price of the wholesale product.”

This is not the first time this has happened. There was a big spike two years ago when the wholesalers were concerned that a hurricane in the US was about to strike the oil fields. It never happened and prices slowly came back to more rational levels which would suggest that the recent surge could be reversed if the weather gets warmer

There are no price controls in Ireland and every garage is free to charge whatever they like for petrol. It is strange, however, when you see garages in one locality moving together like line dancers as has been our reader’s experience.

Cheap long-distance calls

The Irish Timesclassical music critic Michael Dervan doesn't just know music, he also knows bargains and got in touch after stumbling across a remarkable one. The website cheapcalls.ie allows people to make long-distance calls for much less than the regular providers do from your landline. It is very simple to use. On the site are a series of Irish-based numbers with prefixes such as 1890 and 0818 and 1530. You dial the number listed opposite the country you want to call, a voice prompts you to dial the number of the person you want to speak to in that country and you get connected.

Instead of paying the regular charges associated with calling countries overseas, you pay the cost of calling the Irish number you dialled first. So if you want to speak to someone in Canada, you dial an access number which is prefixed 1890 and when you get through you are paying Irish local rates. Ditto if you dial an Australian landline. If you dial an Australian mobile, the access code is prefixed with a 1520 number so you pay 15 cent a minute. The company uses internet telephony to make the connections so it is like having Skype without having to have access to a computer.

Maths mystery at Tesco

Caroline O’Connell was in Tesco recently, not because she likes it, she says, but because it’s the nearest supermarket to her house and in the snow she couldn’t travel far. “I came across a truly astounding offer! One tub of Gu Naughties treats for €1.87, or two for a fiver.”

She says there were three different types advertised for sale at three different prices. The Flapjacks were €1.87, Rocky Roads, €2.35 (or thereabouts, but definitely less than €2.50) and Chocolate Rolls, €4. “Now, if you could find two Chocolate Roll tubs, you were getting a bargain, but they must have been sold out as there were only Rocky Roads and Flapjacks left. I wasn’t going to test the system to see would it indeed overcharge me for buying two tubs, but I can’t help but wonder if people did and were caught unawares.”