PETROL sales slumped by 10% in the first half of this year compared to four years earlier as drivers were hit by high prices and economic uncertainty, the AA has claimed.

Between January and June 2008, retail sales of petrol and diesel reached 18.97 billion litres.

In the first half of this year, retailers sold 8.7bn litres of petrol and 8bn litres of diesel – a total of 16.7bn litres, according to Government figures highlighted by the motoring organisation.

The sharpest drop came between April and June, when almost 500 million fewer litres of petrol were sold. This was despite a dip in prices at the pumps but was partly caused by sales readjusting following the tankers dispute in March.

Overall, more than two billion fewer litres of petrol and diesel were sold on forecourts in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2008.

AA president Edmund King said: "A 10.6% fall in petrol sales this past quarter is a huge drop.

"While we welcome the fact that new cars have become more fuel-efficient, this goes nowhere near to accounting for the crash in demand over the past three months and the past five years.

"Ever-increasing prices in recent years have sent petrol sales into steady decline and the panic-buying at the end of March may have brought forward sales in early April.

"Wet weather may also have played a part."