It usually happens on Wednesday nights, between the supermarket and picking up the kids from practice. You pull into a petrol station, and the low-fuel light is bothering you. You squint at the pump and try to figure out the prices and the small numbers that never quite tell you what you want to know: how much will this tank cost me compared to the one across town?
A new line on the pump that could change everything starting January 17
Starting on that date, petrol stations will have to show the average national fuel price right at the pump. Not the station’s own ad, not a vague “special offer,” but a clear reference number that you can compare at a glance. The driver in front of the pump is no longer in the dark all of a sudden. They can see the price per litre they are about to pay, and just below that, a straight line that shows them what the average price in the rest of the country is today. Imagine a small station in the suburbs on a Monday morning. A delivery driver, who is half-awake, looks up and sees the new display for the first time. Diesel costs €1.89 at the station. Underneath it, in small but clear letters, it says, “Average national price today: €1.79/L.” He stops for one second longer than he usually does. A 70-liter tank costs ten cents more. That’s seven euros going away with one fill-up. If you multiply that by a full month of work, it suddenly becomes a meal at a restaurant or an activity for the kids at school.
This new duty doesn’t come out of nowhere. It is a direct response to months of stress over petrol prices, suspicions of making money off of them, and drivers feeling stuck between their budget and the need to get to work. By making stations show the national average, the government is adding a kind of silent referee to each pump.
How this new display will change the way you fill up your car
The first change that will happen in real life is that your eyes will move in a different way. You won’t just look at the big price numbers anymore. You’ll start looking for the new line that shows the national average. It will become second nature, like looking at the time on your phone. Over the course of a few weeks, many drivers will automatically group their usual stations into three groups: “always above average,” “more or less aligned,” and “often cheaper.” You don’t need an app or a map on your screen; just a quiet mental list. This one line will help you choose whether to fill up all the way, only put in twenty euros or wait until the next station on your route. Of course, not everyone will suddenly start driving 15 km to save two cents a litre. Life is messy, time is short, and we all fill up when we can. But the emotional frame is different now. When you notice that your usual station is always 5, 8, or 10 cents more expensive than the national average, it starts to annoy you. We’ve all been there: the moment you realise you’ve been loyal to a place that wasn’t loyal to your money. You might have picked it because the staff is nice or because it’s on the “right” side of the road. Then, one day, the new line on the pump makes you want to go to the cheaper station two intersections away. There is a bet behind this measure that openness will do what complicated rules can’t always do. When a station posts a price that is much higher than the national average, it sends a strong message. The difference is no longer just a feeling; it is now measured, labelled, and official. Let’s be honest: no one really looks at the prices of petrol in every country every day. The information is available on public websites, but it’s hard to find because it’s hidden in menus and PDFs. The government is betting on a very simple reflex: when people see a clear comparison, many of us will say “no thanks” and drive on.
How to make use of this new information without going crazy
The best way to take advantage of this new mandatory display is to not worry about it too much and look for patterns. In the first week, just read the line with the national average and see how it compares to the station’s price. No notebook or calculator, just a feeling: “higher, lower, about the same.” After a few stops, you’ll start to notice gaps that happen over and over. A station that is consistently more than 5 cents above the average is a strong sign. Those 5 cents hurt more than you think when you have a full tank. Make it a habit: before you squeeze the handle, take a three-second look at both numbers. That’s all. But there is a trap: getting too worried about petrol prices. Some people already zigzag across town looking for the lowest price, wasting time and money along the way. This new display could make them go even further down that spiral. The goal is not to turn into a walking spreadsheet. You don’t want to be the regular customer who pays 10 cents more “just because that’s where I’ve always gone.” This reform wants to get rid of that old habit. Don’t torture yourself if the price is higher if you’re tired, late, or stuck with only one station open at night. Your time and safety are also important.
“Transparency at the pump won’t magically lower prices, but it does give you a basic right: to know, at the exact moment you pay, whether you’re paying more or less than the rest of the country,” says an energy market expert. “People don’t usually go back to blind trust after they see that.”
– Before you fill up, check both the station price and the national average.
– Take note of which usual stations are always above average and by how much.
– Keep one or two other stations in mind for your usual routes.
– Don’t let the information control every single diversion; use it as a guide.
– To really feel the savings, add small habits like driving more smoothly and not speeding up suddenly.
A small line on the pump and a quiet change in power
It’s just one more thing that petrol stations have to do, one more line on a long list of rules and labels. On the ground, it’s different: it’s a new way for you and that machine you go to every week without really seeing it to talk to each other. A kind of quiet negotiation, with an official standard to back it up. Some drivers will just shake their heads and keep doing what they always do. Some people will switch stations in less than a month. Some people will suddenly see how much they’ve been overpaying for years and never go back. And owners of stations will keep a close eye on all of this, either lowering their prices or accepting that the time of quiet opacity is coming to an end. This small change affects a very real part of our daily lives: when we pay to keep moving. The moment we find out, or finally admit, how much that movement really costs us.
| Key point | Detail | Value for the reader |
|---|---|---|
| New mandatory display | Average national fuel price shown at every pump from January 17 | Instant comparison to see if a station is expensive or fair |
| Everyday usage | Quick eye-check ritual before refuelling, no app or calculations needed | Better choices on where and when to fill up, with minimal effort |
| Hidden impact | Pressure on overpriced stations and potential behavioural shift among drivers | Possible savings over months and a stronger sense of control over fuel spending |
