The price of petrol at the pumps has climbed above 115p a litre, having risen nearly 9p a litre since the early part of the year.
The average price is now 115.14p a litre, with diesel averaging 119.8p, the AA said.
Petrol was as high as 131.7p a litre in July 2014, with diesel at 136.37p. Prices then dipped sharply so that on February 1 2015 petrol was just 106.39p a litre on average, with diesel at 113.42p.
The AA said the 8.75p-a-litre hike in petrol prices through February, March and April had added £4.81 to the cost of refuelling a small car (55-litre tank) and £5.47 for a Ford Mondeo (62.5 litres).
The increase has added £17.50 to the monthly fuel bill of a family with two petrol cars.
When the Coalition Government was formed on May 11 2010, petrol averaged 121.60p a litre and diesel 123.07p, the AA said.
AA president Edmund King said: “Although the cost of diesel and petrol is lower than five years ago, yet another spike of 8p or more in the pump price reinforces the financial worries of families, businesses and other drivers who rely heavily on their vehicles.
“The freeze on fuel duty since March 2011 would have given some stability had commodity market price swings not made life hell for the lower-income motorists, some of whom had to decide whether or not to cut back on what they ate to afford to drive to work. Political parties with a fuel-duty increase on their agenda should watch out for the backlash.”
Mr King went on: “With the pump price of diesel still more than 4.5p a litre more expensive than petrol, even though the two fuels cost the same at wholesale level, the Coalition’s other successes in increasing the tax threshold on the approved mileage allowance and introducing a 5p fuel duty rebate in remote rural areas have been soured by the failure to bring transparency to fuel pricing.”