Consumer Market Study on
the functioning of the
vehicle fuels market from a
consumer perspective
Marilena Di Stasi
DG SANCO, B1 Consumer Markets
ECCG
12/03/2014
Key points
• Rationale
 Follow up to negative findings of 6th Consumers Market
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Scoreboard: ranked 2nd lowest in the goods market; below
average on almost all the MPI components: trust,
comparability, problems and consumers' expectations.
Research questions
Information to consumers
Knowledge of the market
Price information, transparency, and competition
 Price fuel comparison websites
Potentially vulnerable groups
Recommendations & next steps
What's the best choice?
Is it the
right fuel?
Are fuels
compatible
with my car?
Research questions
 Are consumers able to make informed choices
including:
 understanding information on labels at petrol stations;
 understanding differences between fuel types;
 suitability of different fuels for specific vehicles.
 How to standardise / harmonise labelling-at-the-
pump practices (esp. those with biofuel content e.g. E10 and B7);
 Consumer perceptions of sustainability of biofuels
compared to fossil fuels (including environmental /
sustainability concerns affecting purchasing decisions);
 Availability of different fuel and retailer types;
 Retail prices.
Methodology
The study and data collection cover 27 Member
States, Iceland and Norway. (was carried out before HR
joined)
All 29 countries covered through:
• Stakeholder organisations survey
• Consumer survey
• Price collection
• Mystery shopping exercises
Study makes mainly use of data collected in the
period 2012-2013.
Information sources
Consumers
most often look for
information on vehicle fuels at the
pump.
Consumers are most likely to
look for information about
vehicle
and
fuel
compatibility
at pumps and
the vehicle’s operating manual.
How easy is it to find clear
information about…
Example of very good labelling
Ron
Fuel denomination
Coloured label on
the nozzle
Is this fuel petrol
or diesel? Note
black nozzle!
Examples of confusing
labelling
Look at
the
different
colours
and
names of
the
available
fuels.
And
the
RON
?
General knowledge about fuels very
poor
Price information, transparency and
competition
Price differentials between regions:
• Motorway prices generally more expensive than those in
capital cities and rural regions.
Price differentials between days of the
week:
• Change by less than 1% between Monday and Friday, but
prices can change several times a day.
Price differentials between manned and
unmanned stations:
• Unmanned stations sell fuels at lower prices than their manned
counterparts (except Greece). But supermarket stations by far
the cheapest followed by independent and non-major brands.
Price fuel comparison websites
60 comparison websites assessed (only in SI no website
identified).
Information on the following items should be better listed
• More up-to-date prices
• More help and information selecting correct fuel type
• More reporting on fuel quality norms or comparison
test results
• Expanded availability and coverage
• Clearer explanations of environmental issues
• Clearer data sources
• Better accessibility and more information for people with
disabilities.
Potentially vulnerable consumers
• Little or no disposable income: More troubled by high prices and price
increases. They fill up whenever they can afford it, and report higher
financial detriment in case of problems.
• Consumers living in rural areas: less choice and only one type of
vehicle-compatible fuel in the area they live: e.g. they buy less branded
fuels.
• People with reduced mobility: many stations lack handicapaccessible toilets and many CWs lack search functionality tools.
• Older consumers: reliance on labelling at the pump increases with
age (including fuel compatibility with vehicle).
• Consumers who drive old vehicles: experience less problems but also
drive less.
• Consumers who buy fuel outside their country of origin: experience
less problems but are better educated and more knowledgeable about
vehicle fuels. But different language fuel denominations may lead to less
certainty in identifying one's most suitable/preferred vehicle fuel type.
Recommendations - Improving
consumer conditions
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Improving information provision to facilitate informed decisionmaking on: regular fuels, biofuels, quality of fuels put in the market,
performance of various fuel types; and the quality of information provided
on comparison websites;
Introducing an EU-wide colour-coding scheme for fuel labelling at
the pump to indicate on the one hand, regular petrol (green), and on the
other regular diesel fuel (black) as is already widely the case;
Ensuring consumer choice and price competition through vehicle fuel
price notification systems and setting up smart mobility portal;
Addressing consumer problems by improving preventive and
enforcement measures;
Improving services provided to persons with disabilities at petrol
stations.
Next steps
Staff Working document to be released during the
first half of the year jointly with the study and key
deliverables.
Q&A
Thank you!
marilena.di-stasi@ec.europa.eu