A third of Consumer NZ poll respondents may get a hybrid or EV

About 81% of Kiwis are driving less to counter costly fuel prices, while a third of Consumer NZ poll respondents are considering switching to an EV or hybrid to save money.

An online fuel pricing poll held between March 12 and 16 by Consumer NZ found four out of five respondents (or 81% of the 390 respondents) are driving less because of “painful” petrol and diesel prices.

“With the price of fuel past $3 a litre in most parts of the country, it’s inevitable that we’re seeing many New Zealanders looking to minimise their driving. A lot of people don’t have a choice, they can’t afford their fuel bill right now,” says Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy.

Consumer’s Sentiment Tracker found rising fuel costs are now the sixth highest financial concern for New Zealanders, jumping from 11th place in previous quarters.

The Sentiment Tracker also found the cost of living has now superseded the previous top concerns — COVID-19 and the price of housing.

In addition to monitoring air-con use, driving more smoothly and carpooling, a third of the respondents are also considering switching to a hybrid or electric vehicle to save money.

As well as contemplating energy-efficient vehicles, many people have stopped filling up their tank to full, with two-thirds of respondents opting for small top-ups when they need it, Consumer NZ says.

Just over a third anticipate further price hikes and are filling up their tank to hedge against higher prices, it adds.

“We know a lot of New Zealanders are really feeling the pain at the pump right now and it’s worsened by increased price pressure across other essentials like groceries, power and rents,” says Duffy.

On March 14, the government responded to the global energy crisis by offering its cost-of-living relief package, which included cutting fuel taxes by 25 cents a litre and halving public transport fares for the next three months.

“This price volatility may be with us for some time and is a signal, along with the climate crisis, that we need to be exploring clean transport alternatives and reduce our dependency on fossil fuels,” says Duffy.

Consumer NZ suggests ways to reduce the vehicle fuel bill include driving smoothly to avoid excessive accelerator use, removing extra items to lessen the load and avoid burning more fuel than necessary, checking the correct tyre pressure, winding up vehicle windows and switching to the air-con to reduce wind resistance, and batching errands together in one trip, or take a short walk or bike instead.