Following the RAC’s lead, the AA has become the second breakdown-and-insurance company of late to criticise fuel retailers for not fully passing savings from falling wholesale prices on to consumers.
In its annual assessment of EV charging, the company notes that off-peak costs for ultra-rapid EV chargers dropped by of 10% in December, with the average price of a kiloWatt hour being 45p, down from 50p in November – though the flat-rate cost of a kWh of electricity at an ultra-rapid plug stood at 75p per kWh in December, up a penny on the previous month.
Similarly, flat rates for fast (8-49kW) and rapid (50-149kW) chargers rose by a penny, while rapid off-peak costs were up 3p on average last month, the firm says. Overall, six of the 13 EV charging-price categories the AA charts remained static between November and December.
Yet while highlighting the off-peak price drop as a “boost” for EV drivers, the AA notes: “The road fuel trade’s failure to pass on more fully lower petrol and diesel wholesale costs has handed EV owners a significant pence-per-mile saving over their fossil fuel counterparts.”
The company states that wholesale fuel prices fell by 7ppl in December, and declares this should have equated to an 8.4p drop at the pump, against an average retail fall of 4ppl last month.
As with the RAC, the AA makes no mention of increasing operational costs in the forecourt sector, while, also like its rival, the AA counts a private-equity company and an investment-management firm as its parents.
Another thing the AA has in common with the RAC is an involved corporate structure: the Automobile Association (Ltd), from which the firm takes its name, is a subsidiary of AA Corporation Limited; which is a subsidiary of AA Senior Co Limited; which is a subsidiary of AA Acquisition Co Limited; which is a subsidiary of AA Intermediate Co Limited; which is a subsidiary of AA Mid Co Limited; which is a subsidiary of AA Limited.
Last year AA Limited brought in revenue of £1.45bn, posted adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization of £450m (a 35% margin), and made an operating profit of £245m.
