Great news for these motorists filling up with petrol in South Africa

Standard Bank is introducing a temporary boost to its UCount Rewards Programme to help South Africans cope with the recent surge in petrol and diesel prices.

Depending on their UCount tier level, motorists can claim up to R15 per litre back in Rewards Points when filling up at Astron Energy or Caltex service stations.

The bank noted that clients filling up a 50-litre tank can earn up to R750 in Rewards points, depending on their UCount Rewards tier level and other qualifying criteria.

This temporary measure comes at a time when motorists are paying R26.63 per litre for petrol and well over R32 per litre for diesel, following May’s fuel price adjustments.

The boosted reward programme was introduced on 16 May and will run until 15 July 2026.

During this time, motorists will earn higher rewards on both petrol and diesel purchases when using a qualifying Standard Bank credit card at Astron Energy or Caltex.

The offer is automatically available to UCount Rewards members across all tier levels.

Standard Bank’s reward boost follows a similar policy introduced by FNB, which recently announced a limited-time “Fuel Boost” for its eBucks programme.

FNB’s boost gives customers a guaranteed 50% increase in eBucks earned on fuel at Engen on top of their standard monthly fuel rewards.

Fuel prices are at an all-time high, but relief is on the horizon

The cost of petrol and diesel skyrocketed in April and May due to the war between the United States and Iran, which has disrupted global oil supplies.

Petrol increased by R3.06 in April, while diesel went up by R7.51 per litre.

The hike would have been higher; however, the government intervened at the last minute with a temporary R3 reduction in fuel taxes.

This measure was extended to May, though South Africa was still hit with a R3.27 increase for petrol, and a R6.19 increase for diesel.

The good news is that the international oil price has largely stabilised over the last month, and South Africa is now projected to see a reduction in the cost of diesel.

According to the Central Energy Fund’s data for mid-May, petrol is showing a small under-recovery of 13c per litre.

Diesel, on the other hand, is set for an over-recovery of R4.41 per litre.

This is a positive turn for fuel prices, even if the cost of fuel is still extremely high.

Unfortunately, these gains will be undermined by the return of South Africa’s fuel taxes, as the National Treasury plans to add half of the General Fuel Levy back in June (R1.50 per litre for petrol and R1.97 for diesel).

The other half will be added back in July.