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Rock band The Cruel Sea will play their first gig in a decade at Byron Bay, to raise funds for the town's mobile wildlife hospital.

Frontman Tex Perkins says the five-piece band, which first formed in 1987, has started to jam again.

"It feels and sounds really good. The guys were keen, so playing a benefit gig made sense to kick start getting back on the road to play a bunch of shows," Perkins said.

Byron Bay Wildlife Hospital was set up after the Black Summer bushfires in 2019/20 but faces closure after the NSW government reneged on a $6 million funding deal.

The hospital has treated more than 4000 animals and operates inside a custom-built semi-trailer, so it can be moved to natural disasters such as bushfires or floods.

It was initially funded with private donations as one of only three all-species facilities in NSW.

It costs about $1.5 million to run each year but has raised only $132,700 for 2024.

The Cruel Sea will play the 1700-capacity Green Room at Byron Events Farm for Wild Aid 2023 on October 21, with Adalita, Loose Content and Jez Mead also on the bill.

Hospital chief executive Stephen Van Mil said his team were grateful for the support.

"Having The Cruel Sea play their first show in 10 years to help raise money for us is mind-blowing," he said.

The Black Summer fires took an unprecedented toll on native wildlife, with millions of hectares burnt including habitat for threatened species such as the greater glider.

An estimated three billion mammals, reptiles, birds and frogs were killed or displaced, according to a report for WWF-Australia.

Robert Leach, an animal rescue officer with the International Fund for Animal Welfare, helped mobilise a team of veterinary volunteers to treat injured wildlife after Black Summer.

He said the disaster exposed gaping holes in the nation's capacity to deal with mass wildlife casualty events.

"We saw, during the fires, that groups that were already dealing with high numbers of animals were just absolutely inundated and pushed well beyond their capacity," he recently told AAP.

He said he was anxious with Australia headed for another period of hot, dry weather.

"I'm a little bit terrified to say that I don't think we're prepared if there was another bushfire. Work has been done but it's slow," he said.

© AAP 2023

A small car has claimed the title of the cheapest to run in Australia but the price of operating some SUVs has also fallen, a new study shows.

Victorian motoring club RACV on Tuesday announced the findings of its Annual Car Running Costs Survey, which lists the cost of running a vehicle.

MG and Hyundai both won two spots each in the list of 11 vehicle categories, which ranged from light cars to commercial vehicles.

And despite record high petrol prices, the RACV found the price of operating some vehicles had fallen compared to 2022.

The RACV Annual Car Running Costs Survey judged the cost of vehicles by numerous factors, including their purchase price, loan repayments, insurance, fuel or charging costs, tyres and maintenance, averaged over five years.

Running costs were based on yearly travel of 15,000km.

RACV named the MG3 hatchback as the cheapest vehicle to run in Australia - claiming pole position for the third year in a row - with a monthly cost of $746.

In second place, the Mazda 3 hatchback claimed the title of the cheapest small car, with a cost of $915, while the Toyota Camry Ascent Hybrid was judged the cheapest medium-sized car with a monthly cost of $1120.

Australia's most popular vehicle category, SUVs, was led by the Hyundai Venue at $926 a month, and book-ended by the large Subaru Outback at $1364.

MG also claimed the cheapest electric vehicle to own with its SUV, as the ZS Excite costs $1172 a month to run.

RACV motoring products general manager Jeff Ames said while larger vehicles cost more to own than smaller cars, the price of driving an SUV had fallen over the past year.

"People should be pleased to know that the cost of owning and operating a car has dropped across seven categories in 2023, including small and medium cars, medium and large SUVs, people movers and light commercial vehicles," he said.

Mr Ames said medium-sized SUVs had experienced the biggest cost fall, with the price of running the Honda CRV Vi down seven per cent, or $83 per month, compared to the cheapest vehicle in 2022.

The price of running a people-mover or all-terrain vehicle remained substantial, however, with the RACV finding the Hyundai Staria cost $1553 per month and the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport commanded $1568 each month.

Figures released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries last week showed SUVs continued to dominate new vehicle sales in Australia, with more than 62,000 sold this year compared to 24,000 light commercial vehicles and 19,000 passenger cars.

© AAP 2023

People on lower incomes often face higher living costs because they lack the means to shop more efficiently, such as buying groceries in bulk, a report says.

The Poverty Premium report released by Anglicare Australia on Tuesday identifies transport, energy and loans among the areas where those earning less pay more.

As well as being disadvantaged at the checkout, poorer people pay more to travel if they're forced to live far away from work and the best credit deals are given to people with the healthiest bank balances, the report said.

Many people find themselves in "debt spirals" trying to juggle upfront costs, and in some cases are forced to skip meals, miss medical appointments or avoid getting insurance - which ends up costing them more down the track.

Anglicare Australia executive director Kasy Chambers said the report is a call to action to stop additional weight being placed on the most financially over-burdened.

"Our research shows that it costs more to be poor," she said.

"These extra costs are a poverty premium, punishing people who are already earning less."

The report found people on low incomes spend 10 per cent more on fuel for less efficient cars, 45 per cent more on credit and loans, 93 per cent more on groceries and a whopping 142 per cent more on phone data.

"These numbers show us that Australians doing it tough need real action, and real leadership," Ms Chambers said.

"That means raising the rate of Centrelink payments, making the minimum wage a living wage, and creating cheaper insurance and energy options for people who need them."

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© AAP 2023