Lorry training firm 'riding out' record diesel price
Fuel prices have been steadily rising since the US-Iran war began in February.
**Lorry training firm 'riding out' record diesel price**
Steve Dulson, who set up Dulson Training in Shropshire in 2013, said it was now costing hundreds of pounds more to fill lorries than at 2025 prices.
Record fuel prices have forced a company that teaches people to drive lorries and buses to "ride out" the rising expense of fuelling its vehicles.
The average price of diesel in the UK reached an all-time high this week of 199.33p a litre, according to the RAC motoring organisation.
Prices have been climbing steadily since the US-Iran war started in February. Petrol has also increased to 174.23p a litre.
Steve Dulson, managing director of Shropshire-based Dulson Training, said it was costing hundreds of pounds more to fill each lorry compared with 2025 prices.
"Over the last 12 months we've seen a rise of up to 50p a litre, excluding VAT, and it's hard to react to that, because of how we deal with our customers," he said.
"Our customers have usually been in our pipeline for some time, taking medicals, applying for provisional [licences] or taking theory tests, so by the time they've got to their practical training, and the fuel prices have increase, they've already been quoted.
"That makes it difficult for us to put prices up."
Dulson Training has six training centres in Shrewsbury, Telford, Ludlow, Wrexham, Wolverhampton and Nantwich.
The price of petrol and diesel had been falling for much of the period since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
But the war in the Middle East, which began on 28 February, has added 59p to the average cost of a litre of diesel, or just under 40%, and 41p to the price of petrol.
International supplies of diesel have been heavily restricted by the conflict.
Dulson said his family-run business could make only limited fuel savings by "extending breaks" during training sessions or "take routes that don't use as much fuel".
"The customer has paid us to do a job and we're going to do that to the best of our ability," he said.
"As next year comes round, we might have to increase prices to reflect what we're going through, unless there's a downturn."