All Latest News articles – Page 336
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News
Sainsbury’s sparks petrol price war
Sainsbury’s has sparked a supermarket price war on fuel after an announcement it was cutting its prices was rapidly followed by Asda and Tesco also announcing cuts. It began yesterday when Richard Crampton, Sainsbury’s head of fuel, said that from today Sainsbury’s petrol prices will drop by 4p per litre ...
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ACS issues guidance on displaying ’lads mags’
A minister has praised guidance published by the Association of Convenience Store on how to display men’s lifestyle magazines. The guidance has been published as part of acommitment by ACS to deliver on the Prime Minister’s challenge to reduce the exposure of children to sexualised imagery. James Lowman said: “Parents ...
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Tesco plans rejected after campaign
An application by Tesco to open a petrol filling station in Looe, Cornwall, has been defeated after a local campaign supported by MRH, the top company in Forecourt Trader’s Top 50 Indies. The plans for a supermarket and filling station had been recommended for acceptance by the council’s planning officer, ...
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Asda bans naked customer
A driver has been banned from an Asda supermarket after filling up his car at the petrol station while naked, according to a report on SWNS.com. Liam Marsh stripped off and posed for a picture at the Asda forecourt in Yeovil, Somerset. He posed for the picture because he wanted ...
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Tobacco packaging decision "has not been taken"
The prime minister has denied that a decision has already been taken on plain packaging for tobacco products, according to the smokers’ lobby group Forest. Earlier this week a newspaper report claimed “a senior Whitehall source” confirmed that legislation would be announced in the Queen’s speech in May. Forest reports ...
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P&H and Costcutter tight lipped over reports of deal
Costcutter and Palmer & Harvey have both declined to comment on reports in The Grocer that they have agreed a new partnership deal. Costcutter stores are currently supplied by Nisa, but according to the report P&H will take over the distribution contract when it expires in July next year, and ...
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The age of the indie is upon us, Owens tells Top 50 retailers
The fuel supply chain is going through incredible change, but change drives opportunity and creates a level playing field for everyone, Greenergy chief executive Andrew Owens told an audience of the UK’s biggest independent fuel retailers this week. Owens was the guest speaker at this year’s Top 50 Indies dinner, ...
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MRH extends its lead
MRH has not only retained the top spot in the Forecourt Trader Top 50 Indies, but also added more new sites than any of its competitors even after Euro Garages acquired 45 sites in January. The leader accounts for 377 sites out of the total of 1,303 covered in this ...
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ACS calls for rates change
The Association of Convenience Stores has called for an overhaul of business rates increases after the results of its latest survey revealed the destructive impact that unpredictable rate hikes are having on local shops. The quarterly Voice of Local Shops survey, which tracks the sales and confidence of small stores, has shown that the impending increase in business rates is more of a concern now than it has been at any point since the start of 2012. Forty five per cent of retailers in the last survey cited business rates as a major obstacle to success for their store – more than those concerned about crime, taxation and obtaining finance combined. ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “If the Government wants to have a long-term positive impact on small businesses across the UK, they must cap the rates increase at 2% - bringing it in line with the council tax cap and the Government’s own targets for inflation. Allowing these unpredictable hikes to continue will send a clear message that the Chancellor has failed to recognise the importance of the retail economy.” When asked what they most wanted from the Chancellor’s Budget, convenience store retailers called for a reduction in the annual business rates increase, but also for action to reduce the level of VAT, currently set at 20%. The survey also revealed that 47% of stores have seen a decrease in profits over the last quarter, with 32% claiming that they have had to cut the number of staff hours in their business.
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Partnership deal benefits Murco members
Murco Petroleum has found a way to cut through much of the red tape involved in dealing with numerous local authorities over petroleum licence and other regulatory compliance matters involving its service stations. The oil company has revealed that a partnership deal it agreed with London Fire Brigade is producing significant benefits across its UK network. Kevin Gardiner, Murco’s maintenance and development manager, said the process of dealing with local authorities was streamlined after Murco formed a Primary Authority Partnership with London Fire Brigade. Gardiner explained: “Primary Authority is the gateway to simpler, more successful local regulation, based on a new relationship between businesses and local authorities. “Regardless of size, a business operating across council boundaries can form a Primary Authority Partnership with a single local authority in relation to regulatory compliance. Once legally nominated by the Local Better Regulations Office (LBRO), partnerships are automatically recognised by all local regulators. “If a problem arises, the Primary Authority can coordinate enforcement action to ensure that our business is treated consistently and that responses are proportionate to the issue. “The benefits of Primary Authority Partnership started as soon as our partnership was registered by LBRO. From then on, it had legal status and is now recognised by all councils when they undertake inspection and compliance activities at our stations.” He concluded: “Some 30% of our network has already benefitted from this Partnership. Visits by petroleum officers are so much easier. “With station information stored on a central web database, information can be looked at and prepared prior to any site visit, saving time for the petroleum officer and the station manager.”
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Bentley driver steals fuel
Police in Lancashire are hunting for a Bentley driver who filled his tank at two petrol stations and failed to pay up. The driver of the green-grey Bentley first struck when he helped himself to £92.80 – just over 70 litres – of unleaded fuel from Cross Roads Garage, on ...
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Hounslow heads fuel thefts in capital
Hounslow has more thefts of fuel from vehicles than any other London borough, according to the Metropolitan Police. A total of 175 thefts were reported between 2009 and 2012, but there were only five prosecutions. Greenwich, Lewisham, Southwark and Merton were the other London boroughs in the top five for ...
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New car sales up
New car sales have risen every month for the last year, according to figures released today by the RMI National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA). They show that month-on-month sales were up 7.9% compared with February 2012. Fleet registrations decreased by 4.4% last month while private registrations increased by 28.9%. NFDA ...
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RMI in card protection deal
The Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) and Phoenix Managed Networks have signed a deal to provide the RMI’s 7,000-plus membership with protection for their card payment systems. Phoenix has agreed a special rate to provide RMI members with its PhoeniXSentry system to keep their card data secure. PhoeniXSentry is a ...
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Fairbanks wins Morrisons contract
Fairbanks has announced a renewal of its wetstock management contract for Morrisons’ forecourts, and has also revealed it is extending the range of services it offers. The new three-year agreement with the supermarket giant covers its network of 314 forecourts and 11 regional distribution centres and is a continuation of ...
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Roadchef awards £60m contract to Blakemore Wholesale
Roadchef has awarded a contract worth £60m over five year to Blakemore Wholesale.The contract is to provide a range of confectionery, grocery and chilled foods, tobacco and motor oils to forecourt stores and WH Smith shops at 37 Roadchef sites at 27 motorway service areas across Britain.Blakemore Wholesale managing director ...
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PRA stages forum in Belfast
The PRA’s next Regional Forum is being held in Belfast on Thursday 21 March.The event is taking place at Maldron Hotel (formerly Park Plaza), Belfast International Airport, with coffee available from 10am, and a free buffet lunch will be provided.Topics on the agenda include: PRA - Deloitte study into UK ...
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Blitz on red tape welcomed
The National Federation Retail Newsagents (NFRN) has welcomed the news that accounting requirements for micro-businesses are to simplified as part of the government’s latest blitz on red tape.Responding to the announcement from business minister Jo Swinson, NFRN national president Alan Smith said: “Red tape places an unnecessary and unwelcome burden ...
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New drink-drive campaign
A £50,000 pint of beer was unveiled in London today as part of the Government’s latest Think! campaign highlighting the consequences of a drink-drive conviction.The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) has calculated the personal financial cost of drink-driving for the first time, pricing it between £20,000 and £50,000. The calculation ...
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Fuel discount deal for RHA and FTA members
Discounted fuel is being made available to members of the Road Haulage Association and Freight Transport Association through a new joint fuel card from The Fuelcard Company.Operating on the Keyfuels network, which covers one in five of all UK petrol filling stations, the new RHA FTA fuel card can be ...