How rising fuel prices are changing the way Australians drive
Cost-of-living pressures are affecting consumers, especially at the fuel bowser. To better understand our customers’ concerns, Maxxia (part of the McMillan Shakespeare Group) analysed the way Australians were responding to higher fuel prices. The research used anonymised data from almost 220,000 fuel transactions between February and June 2026.
The analysis reveals a clear pattern: an initial price shock, a period of suppressed driving and delayed refuelling, and then only a partial return to old habits once prices came off their peak.
Key findings
1. Fuel shock changed habits quickly
- In March 2026, the share of transactions at or above $2 per litre rose from just over 10% to more than 83.4%.
- Median fill size dropped by more than 5% almost overnight, while small “top‑up” fills under 20 litres more than doubled from 3.4% to 8.4%.
- By May 2026, as prices eased back to around $2.06 per litre, fill sizes had largely recovered, but remained below February 2026 levels, while bigger refills of 60 litres or more were less common than before the spike, down 13%.
2. Australians are stretching every tank further
- Maxxia's drivers were travelling more kilometres between fills in May than they were before the fuel price spike in February (567km against 533km).
- The number of days between refuelling rose sharply and steadily in every state, peaking in May at 13.5 days – up from 8.6 days before the shock in February (Mar 11.1 days, Apr 12.5 days, May 13.5 days).
- This suggests customers were combining trips, delaying visits to the bowser and trying to make each tank last as long as possible.
3. Long distance drivers are the most affected
- Very high‑use drivers, travelling more than 120 kilometres a day, cut their distance by 45% between February and April and were still well below their previous driving levels in May (181kms in Feb to 99kms in April).
- In contrast, “high” users (60–120 kilometres a day) stayed relatively stable, indicating a core of travel that is essential and much harder to trim (83km in Feb, 81km in Mar, 76km in Apr & 76km in May).
Antonia Albanese, Chief Customer Officer at McMillan Shakespeare, said the data show cost of living pressure playing out in very practical, everyday decisions. “For many of our customers, the car isn’t a luxury – it’s how they get to work, visit clients, or support their family,” said Antonia. “In a cost‑of‑living environment where you can’t always choose to drive less, the lever you do have is how you manage those costs.”
"Salary packaging and novated leasing can’t change the price on the bowser, but they can help smooth and structure one of the biggest household expenses. For a lot of working Australians, particularly those who have to stay on the road, that extra predictability and potential tax efficiency can make a real difference.”
Novated leasing can offer working Australians a convenient and potentially tax-free way to get into a car. For those looking to avoid high fuel prices and make the switch to an electric vehicle, our teams at Maxxia, RemServ and Oly are experts in EV novated leasing benefits. By understanding how the spending habits of our customers change and reflect the macroeconomic environment, we can better understand their pain points and deliver valued solutions to meet our customer's needs.
About the analysis
The fuel behaviour analysis covers almost 220,000 anonymised salary packaging fuel card transactions from Maxxia customers between February and May 2026. It examines changes in fuel price, fill size, refuelling frequency and kilometres travelled across states and driving‑intensity segments.