Drivers have been urged by an MP to ‘think twice’ before getting fuel from Morrisons and other supermarket fuel stations because of the risk of being ‘ripped off’.
It comes amid anger about the cost of fuel locally, particularly at Morrisons' Bridport.
The price of fuel at the store's garage in West Bay Road has been a sore point with locals who have complained the charges are unfair - at a time when prices are at an all-time high generally.
They say the supermarket petrol station, which is well used by locals and passing drivers, charges more compared to other sites in the area - even charging more to fill up than Morrisons in Yeovil and in Weymouth.
The Bridport Business Chamber of Trade and Commerce has previously shared its 'deep concern' over the price of fuel locally, and is campaigning to ensure fuel prices in Bridport are comparable with surrounding towns.
Now West Dorset MP Chris Loder has urged drivers to think before filling up.
He has asked Morrisons' Head of Fuel to overhaul the company's current pricing policies which he says are "unfairly discriminating against rural people throughout west Dorset and further afield".
At a meeting last week with supermarket bosses, Mr Loder expressed first hand his intention to meet with the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) to further hold supermarket fuel stations to task on their pricing strategy. Mr Loder also invited Morrisons to meet with him and the Prime Minister.
Mr Loder hosted a call with Bridport Business Chamber and Bridport Town Council, following feedback about the local fuel price being "up to 20p higher in Bridport than in neighbouring towns such as Weymouth and Yeovil". This culminated in Mr Loder’s intervention in the House of Commons during Prime Minister’s Questions last month.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak responded to Mr Loder by stating that he has called for a review into the fuel industry by the CMA.
Mr Loder said: “I strongly welcome this review and intend to meet with the CMA shortly to discuss this. Supermarket chains have behaved appallingly towards rural people and suppliers alike. I am pleased to be making progress on this and hope to see a progressive decrease in local fuel prices from Morrisons."
A spokesperson for Morrisons said: "In the UK petrol prices vary from town to town and even neighbourhood to neighbourhood and we will always strive to be competitive in each local area. Occasionally this can mean price differences between different areas open up. We continually review our prices and will look to reduce this difference as soon as we can."
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