The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has fined Asda £60,000 over failing to provide information for its fuel pricing probe.
The supermarket was handed two fines, each valued at £30,000, for “failing to respond to a compulsory written request for information” and for sending a representative to a CMA meeting who was not equipped to provide appropriate evidence.
The watchdog published its findings on Monday from its year-long investigation into whether “any failure in competition” was causing consumers to pay higher fuel prices than they should be.
The report found that both Asda and Morrisons had “each made the decision to target higher margins” on fuel sales last year, which has contributed to drivers paying an extra 6p per litre for fuel in 2022.
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It said Asda’s fuel margin target in 2023 was more than three times what it was in 2019, while Morrisons had doubled its target margin over the same period.
The report also found that Sainsbury’s and Tesco “did not respond in the way you would expect in a competitive market and instead raised their prices in line with these changes”.
The watchdog said this “indicated that competition has weakened” and has called for government legislation to help drive down fuel prices.
CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell said: “Competition at the pump is not working as well as it should be and something needs to change swiftly to address this.
“Drivers buying fuel at supermarkets in 2022 have paid around 6 pence per litre more than they would have done otherwise, due to the four major supermarkets increasing their margins.
“This will have had a greater impact on vulnerable people, particularly those in areas with less choice of fuel stations.
“We need to reignite competition among fuel retailers and that means two things. It needs to be easier for drivers to compare up to date prices so retailers have to compete harder for their business.”
In response to the CMA’s fines, an Asda spokesperson said: “The penalty notices relate to two individual alleged technical breaches in the way information was shared with the CMA over a 12-month period, during which time a significant number of documents were shared with the CMA to aid their study and we engaged fulsomely with their enquiries.”
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