Coles/Woolies petrol war hots up.

[GasoLane]

I see in the paper today that Woolworths are now giving 6cpl discount if you spend more than $50....

Let battle commence!

[rushing on acid]

coles are doing the same, i saw it today at a shell servo, but dunno what the minimum spend is and you have to have another docket

[XRQTR]

Unfortunately it's all designed to get you shopping their with the thoughts of saving money on your weekly fuel spend, keep a close eye on the prices and compare them with the likes of the independants and you may find that you are actually spending more.

Also a lot of the independant servos are now offering fuel discounts with any voucher regardless of which grocery store your docket is from, so this all goes to help the little guys and yourself in the long term.

[Dazza XLT]

Originally Posted by XRQTR

Also a lot of the independant servos are now offering fuel discounts with any voucher regardless of which grocery store your docket is from, so this all goes to help the little guys and yourself in the long term.

I know at IGA in Bowen, take your fuel docket into them, and they give you the discount off your shopping bill. Top Idea if you ask me.

Cheers

[ZEDAYE]

Just watch the grocery prices rise to pay for the fuel discounts!! You don't think they will drop profits to attract new customers?

[Steffo]

It doesn't really benefit those who do their own shopping. You spend the money you'd spend on fuel elsewhere. Myself on the other hand, I don't do or pay for the shopping, but I own a car and get given the vouchers, so the $1 they save on my $50 weekly fuel bills is my money saved... and put straight into a tollbooth on one of Sydney's many toll-roads, some of which are ridiculously expensive ($4.50 M1 Eastern Distributor anyone?)

[GTP-814]

Originally Posted by Steffo

It doesn't really benefit those who do their own shopping. You spend the money you'd spend on fuel elsewhere. Myself on the other hand, I don't do or pay for the shopping, but I own a car and get given the vouchers, so the $1 they save on my $50 weekly fuel bills is my money saved... and put straight into a tollbooth on one of Sydney's many toll-roads, some of which are ridiculously expensive ($4.50 M1 Eastern Distributor anyone?)

Try $4.40 for the carpark they cal the M2, increase occuring as of 1/10

[Smoked]

Meh, get 2c a litre off for my LPG @ BP, and I dont have to spend a red cent on shopping.

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by Smoked

Meh, get 2c a litre off for my LPG @ BP, and I dont have to spend a red cent on shopping.

We only have one BP here that gives the discount and they're 4c dearer than most other places in town !

[cupic]

Originally Posted by Smoked

Meh, get 2c a litre off for my LPG @ BP, and I dont have to spend a red cent on shopping.

hiya Smoked about that 2c on BP Gas Ive sent it on a email and still nothing how long does ot take before you receive the discount card

cheers

[DOC]

A good example of how messed up things are, for one minute does anyone think that these companies give away this money, or is it built in, the only loosers are those that can't be bothered with running with the pack of sheep with thier little vouchers, and the discount is built into the pricing so in theory those who cant be bothered with the hype pay for those who use the discount vouchers.

if no one used them we would all have more money to spend on things we wanted rather than subsidise the shopper docket discount people.

just my 2c

[Pinkbits]

Originally Posted by DOC

just my 2c

Should'nt that be 4c :

[GasoLane]

Originally Posted by DOC

A good example of how messed up things are, for one minute does anyone think that these companies give away this money, or is it built in,

One way they make more on products is to screw the primary supplier, If the big two cant buy what they want at the price they want they dont stock the product. :

Originally Posted by SpoolMan

Yes a survey done showed every supermarket that had one of there own service stations close to there store, had higher grocery prices.

The Economist who did the survey (Rhonda Smith) should have tried some country areas where there are very few servos close to the main supermarkets.

Another ruthless way the big two operate (in country areas) their service stations. Where there is a roadhouse attached to the servo (that they've bought from Shell/Caltex) the roadhouse gets closed, they then lease the roadhouse to an outside source as there is more profit in using one console operator on fuel than numerous people serving food - which usually tastes like the furniture anyway!

[SpoolMan]

Yes a survey done showed every supermarket that had one of there own service stations close to there store, had higher grocery prices.
All there doing is squeezing the independants out of the market the same as they done to the butcher and fruit grocer.

[new2ford]

Fool's paradise. See: http://www.seven.com.au/todaytonight/story/?id=29347

You pay for the "discount" with higher prices at the supermarket. If you want cheaper petrol, shop at Franklins or Aldi and buy petrol from an independent servo in an area where there's lots of competition.

[desGT]

Originally Posted by new2ford

Fool's paradise. See: http://www.seven.com.au/todaytonight/story/?id=29347

You pay for the "discount" with higher prices at the supermarket. If you want cheaper petrol, shop at Franklins or Aldi and buy petrol from an independent servo in an area where there's lots of competition.

I just got a Citibank/BP Mastercard which gives me 5% off BP fuel (to a limit each month - $300?), and I shop at IGA. May not work for everyone, but the BP near me is always one of the lowest prices (Melb), and I get the discount, no vouchers required, and I do not support the (supermarket) overpriced big guys.

[TUF514]

ZEDAYE hit the nail on the head.

just on tolls, wouldnt you think that over time as the bridge/tunnel has been paid off, the tolls should come down? haha yeah right. they just keep going up.

roads certainly arent benefiting.

[Redrum]

Just means both will force the price of fuel up to compensate this extra discount, thus to keep company profits going. This whole cole, woolworths thing has done nothing to make petrol cheaper!

[LTDHO]

Any discount is a good discount. Unless you know different, you get nothing for nothing. Money saved at the pump is spent at the store.

[Casper]

Actually Mrs c works for coles now and thats not how its working. You spend $30 in a coles or bilo store and then you have to spend $2 at the actually particpating service station to get the 6c off. Its actually written on the catologues.

[LTDHO]

Originally Posted by Casper

Actually Mrs c works for coles now and thats not how its working. You spend $30 in a coles or bilo store and then you have to spend $2 at the actually particpating service station to get the 6c off. Its actually written on the catologues.

Does the $20 include fuel or do you have to buy a Mars bar too?

[AWD Chaser]

All this stuffing around to save $2 off a full tank. IMO, it's not worth it.... I spend about $130 on shopping at woolies per week, and get the vouchers, and fuel up each week at Caltex and I CBF using them anyway. A 1c rise in fuel is 72c more for a full tank. I couldn't care less....

As mentioned above, your gonna pay for it somehow...

[Casper]

Originally Posted by LTDHO

Does the $20 include fuel or do you have to buy a Mars bar too?

Gotta buy that Marsbar!

[new2ford]

As well as Rhonda Smith's work, Australian Consumer Association (Choice magazine) supermarket surveys over the years have consistently shown Coles and Woolworths are the most expensive supermarkets. (I believe IGA also even more so but not included I think because they are 'independent' rather than a single ownership) The problem is that Coles and Woolworths have been aggressively buying up both supermarkets and servos and creating a 'duopoly' or even monopoly in some areas. Country and outer suburban people would be particularly badly hit by this due to the resultant lack of competition.

Unfortunately consumers have played a role in this by their lemming-like belief in the fuel 'discount' vouchers. By flocking to it they've encouraged the decline in competitive independent servos and thus contributed indirectly to higher fuel prices - and pay more for their supermarket shopping as well. But Coles and Woolworths shareholders and directors are very happy about the state of their own wallets of course.

(LTDHO the Mars bar will be about 80c more in the Coles Express servo than it is in Franklins so that will already be 80c off your fantastic fuel 'saving' of $2 or so - or in fact $2.20 off at the full price of the Mars bar!)

[nicko_bud]

The coles 2c litre discount starts on the 4th october at 12:01am... buy fuel and spend $2 or more in the store to recieve 6c litre off.. You must have a 4c voucher from bilo or coles or liquorland though to recieve the 2c discount..

Originally Posted by LTDHO

Any discount is a good discount. Unless you know different, you get nothing for nothing. Money saved at the pump is spent at the store.

I agree

Originally Posted by new2ford

....(LTDHO the Mars bar will be about 80c more in the Coles Express servo than it is in Franklins so that will already be 80c off your fantastic fuel 'saving' of $2 or so - or in fact $2.20 off at the full price of the Mars bar!)

Serious new2ford..... ok so your telling me that you plan ahead that much u have a confectionary stockpile in ur glovebox??? Look if you hungry ur hungry? I know myself when i fill up for fuel i usually get a F.U ice coffee or something so y not save that little bit.. eg..

nicko_bud's EA 's' pac... 60L at $1.209 = $72.54
4c Discount= $2.40
2c Discount= $1.20
--------------------
Total Fuel cost=$68.94
600ml Ice Coffee= $2.80
------------------------
TOTAL BILL=$71.74

So i got the ice coffee for 'nothing' ... just for doing my shopping at coles... and i "saved" 80c on what i was gonna pay for the fuel anyway...

At the end of the day its your decision what you do... but remember prices are going to go up no matter what. If blaming it on fuel or something else helps you sleep at night then go for it .. blame fuel..

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by nicko_bud

Serious new2ford..... ok so your telling me that you plan ahead that much u have a confectionary stockpile in ur glovebox??? Look if you hungry ur hungry? I know myself when i fill up for fuel i usually get a F.U ice coffee or something so y not save that little bit.. eg..

nicko_bud's EA 's' pac... 60L at $1.209 = $72.54
4c Discount= $2.40
2c Discount= $1.20
--------------------
Total Fuel cost=$68.94
600ml Ice Coffee= $2.80
------------------------
TOTAL BILL=$71.74

So i got the ice coffee for 'nothing' ... just for doing my shopping at coles... and i "saved" 80c on what i was gonna pay for the fuel anyway...

Well yes, on the spur of the moment a man's gotta eat what a man's gotta eat! But does that 80c outweigh the $20 extra you might have spent doing your weekly shopping at Coles? (I've worked out up to $50 extra for our large family.)

It could be argued the coffee cost you $19.20!

[xr8svo]

If you sit down and work it out you can save money. The worst things at coles and woolies are fruit and veg and meat so we buy them at small independant butchers and a fruit and veg market and get huge savings and quality of product is great. Generally we buy savings brands and stuff like that most of the time it is fine not that different to the expensive stuff and if it is bad then we buy the expensive brand but not much. Missus also has a coles myer card so we get additional 4c on top of every 4c when we spend $30. We also pay the cards off every month that way there is no interest paid there either. Shell servos that i go to here in bris are as cheap if not cheaper than alot of the independants, so if i can save 8c a litre on optimax as i have to run in my car which saves me over $4 a fill just buy shopping at coles and spending over $30 and when coles is also only 2 min from my front door on the way home then i am going to. You can do it right and make it work for you but you have to sit down and work out where the savings are and use them.

[Falchoon]

Originally Posted by xr8svo

If you sit down and work it out you can save money. The worst things at coles and woolies are fruit and veg and meat so we buy them at small independant butchers and a fruit and veg market and get huge savings and quality of product is great.

You have to buy groceries somewhere. I have a small independendent supermarket about 5 mins walk from my house that offers no petrol discounts and it is generally a very expensive place to shop (except 2lt Milk is about $1 cheaper than the "big two"!). So once a week I drive an extra 2km to the nearest shopping mall that has both a Coles and Woolies (and Aldi) and spend my money there. I drive past a Woolies servo on the way. Nearest Shell is about 5km away. Nearest fruit market is about 15km away so I'm sure the savings with the cheaper food there would be eaten up with fuel costs.

I would rather pay full price than use dodgy independant fuel.

Yes. Especially if you have a car that might be edited or tuned for a premium quality fuel. If you have an old banger get-to-work car then it is probably ok to use independents.

[Feathers]

These "bonus" discounts are only for a couple of weeks.
The Woolies one either runs until 15/10, or the end of the month, I read the paperwork on it at work, but I don't remember.

[bob^]

Might aswell use the vouchers though if you have always shopped at Coles, and always buy your fuel from Shell anyway??
I know that is the case with us.