Chancellor George Osborne’s recent Budget announcement to scrap a planned increase in fuel tax will save the typical tradesperson almost £1,000 this year alone, according to findings by UK van leasing company Vanarama.

The average Ford Transit driver does 12,000 miles per year at 34mpg. The original proposed fuel increase would have put the cost of petrol at 172.26p per litre, resulting in an annual fuel spend of £2,763.92.

Based on the current price of petrol, freezing the rise in fuel duty will save van drivers £866.43 for the next 12 months.

For those tradesmen who were anticipating this price increase, news of the freeze means more cash, which they can spend on their business, on new equipment, and on new hires.

“We’ve had many of our customers talking about their desire to drive their businesses to next level,” said Andy Alderson, managing director of Vanarama “and this welcome news from Mr. Osborne provides tradesmen with the incentives they need to make this a reality, providing extra cash to put plans into place.”

“This is great for the whole trade industry, as builders, joiners, plumbers and plasterers will all benefit from this extra money in the economy,” he continued. “Many of the tradesmen we work with are eager and excited to use this saving to expand their business, which will no doubt provide further support to a range of local companies.”

The fuel duty escalator was due to increase the price at the pumps by 54p per litre from September.