PETROL for under a quid a litre, diesel just 3p or 4p more – 25p a litre less than a year ago.

It all seems too good to last. Sorry, it won’t. So you need to play your fuel cards right to minimise company spend.

Current low prices are why the taxman’s cutting businesses’ advisory fuel rate (AFR) from December 1 by 1p per mile for petrol engines over 1400cc, to 13ppm 1401-2000cc and 20ppm over 2.0 litres, LPG vehicles over 2.0 litres to 13p. HMRC’s AFR for diesels are unchanged. For now.

But hopes of a strongly hinted at continued freeze on fuel duty crashed when Chancellor George Osbourne announced last week that he will increase fuel duty for the first time in five years next April. Duty will rise with inflation each year from April 2016, sparking debate as to how much prices are likely to rise by at the pump next spring.

It was one of the quieter announcements in the Autumn Statement that the Office for Budget Responsibility says is expected to bring in some £2.3bn over the next five years, partly to counter the revenue lost through increased vehicle efficiency, never mind the surge in hybrids and pure electric vehicles bringing in little or no fuel duty or vehicle excise duty.

This tax grab is on top of the £1.4bn expected to be brought in by continuing to levy the 3% company car diesel supplement, due to have ended next April, again for five more years.