Caitríona Redmond: What to do if you're concerned about fuel surcharges
DO WE really have to pay the fuel surcharges and levies that businesses may introduce in the wake of the fuel crisis?At the start of the month, I got the email that many Panda waste customers have received, alerting me to a new 97c monthly fuel surcharge to reflect the increased cost of fuel. The business says it will apply this surcharge only during the fuel crisis, and if prices settle, it will no longer be applied to customers’ invoices.It’s very interesting that there is no mention of an agreed-upon upper or lower fuel price threshold at which this surcharge kicks in for consumers. Since Panda has omitted this information from their advisory emails, it’s difficult to determine when the additional fee may be removed.
Panda has confirmed it is availing of the government fuel support measures. Yet, it seems, they still intend to pass on the additional fuel cost to their customers as well.
Presumably, the waste collection and management company believe that their trucks and the movement of refuse come under the “haulage” category.I have to wonder why they would be charging their customers for the fuel increase, despite potentially receiving financial support from the State. Customers are being asked to prop up the business, but in reality, this could be a case of propping up profitability levels.In response to a query from the Irish Examiner, a spokesperson for Panda said: “Due to the significant recent increases in the cost of fuel, Panda has been forced to apply a temporary fuel surcharge. Unfortunately, we can no longer continue to absorb this major increase in the cost of operating. This surcharge will be kept under review and will be discontinued/adjusted as soon as fuel prices ease. Panda is availing of the new government fuel measures; however, its fuel costs are still significantly higher than was previously the case.”I have no doubt the businesses that have begun to pass on their increased fuel or operating costs to their customers believe this is the right decision.The problem is that once a company raises its prices, for whatever reason, it’s seldom that they reduce them or return to the previous price levels.We have an established pattern in Ireland. Prior to energy prices rising in 2022, the average consumer paid 22.8c per kWh for electricity. After the invasion of Ukraine, our fuel costs rose significantly, with the price reaching 37.5c per kWh in 2023. Nowadays, the price has never declined to pre-conflict rates.
The slow trickle of increased prices across the Irish economy is making us all feel hard-pressed. The cost of services and essentials is rising, and the money we have left over at the end of the week or month is less.
That has a knock-on effect on service businesses such as cafes and restaurants, which will struggle to stay open with fewer customers. They can’t wait for a future in which we may become a bit more flúirseach (abundant). That future may come with substantially fewer small, local businesses, which is not good for our society or economy.It is true that Panda is a private company that is free to set whatever prices it wishes. However, they have a captive audience in some areas of the country where they are the only waste service providers, and many customers are tied into contracts and cannot switch to another collection service at the moment.In answer to the original question, you certainly do have to pay an additional fuel surcharge to keep your service running as normal. This may be an incentive to reduce what you put in your black or general waste bin, but that doesn’t make it any easier to accept.Generally, we can all reduce our bin charges by recycling and composting more, then throwing away much less general waste (black bin). Although 97c per month isn’t a massive surcharge per household, it’s roughly an additional €300,000 (or more), which will now flow into Panda’s coffers.
Mark my words, many businesses are watching this space to see whether consumers will swallow the surcharge and how much impact it will have on Panda’s business.
If you’re concerned about the increase, I recommend you pick up a pen and paper and write to them to express your complaint. Sending an email or a traditional letter is very effective, I find.Taking it a little further, we should be writing to or calling our politicians to ask if businesses that are benefiting from state fuel supports can also charge their customers more.Politicians rushed through these supports in the Dáil for the benefit of the same businesses; they should have foreseen this behaviour and set up consumer protections.The longer the conflict in the Middle East continues to affect fuel prices, the more likely it is that other businesses will follow suit. We are all going to tighten our belts a notch in the hope that it’ll be short-lived.WASTE NOT, WANT NOT Food discarded in the bin is effectively opening your wallet and pouring money down the drain.The best way to reduce both your food and waste bills is to take a look at what you’re buying and how much you are throwing away.A very simple kitchen audit could throw up that you are buying too much fresh food and can’t eat it before it goes off, or that you’re not storing what you’ve bought effectively.Start an audit this week by holding onto your shopping receipt.Whenever you throw food away, take note of its value on the shopping receipt.By Sunday, you’ll have an uncomfortable value for all the food you’ve discarded.
