What would you tell politicians about heating oil?

malc_b

Competition needs to be looked. Maybe we need an ombudsman to keep an eye on things, such as oil consolidators actually being owned by oil companies rather than being independent. There is also a trend for the number of different suppliers to be reducing. I run a village group scheme where we place group orders to get a better price. In the past I've got quotes from 10 different companies (i.e. all of the companies that supply our area). That's now down to 6 due to buyouts/takeovers. There needs to be a good number of companies to ensure there is competition to keep prices fair so the reducing is worrying.

The cost of oil heating (~5.8p) is not too far off gas (~5.3p) or E7 (~5.3p) however it is harder to afford. To get the best oil price you need to fill the tank in the summer which is a lump sum of at least £500 (1000l). Those on gas/elec pay monthly. Plus those on gas/elec can fix their price for at least a year or more. Buying in the summer may last a year, if you have a big enough tank. Typically it will 6 months and you'll need a top in the dear season. A way to put oil users on the same footing as gas users would be nice but I don't see how myself.

Ectophile

malc_b wrote: »

The cost of oil heating (~5.8p) is not too far off gas (~5.3p) or E7 (~5.3p) however it is harder to afford. To get the best oil price you need to fill the tank in the summer which is a lump sum of at least £500 (1000l). Those on gas/elec pay monthly. Plus those on gas/elec can fix their price for at least a year or more. Buying in the summer may last a year, if you have a big enough tank. Typically it will 6 months and you'll need a top in the dear season. A way to put oil users on the same footing as gas users would be nice but I don't see how myself.

Several banks offer 1 year regular savings accounts. Open one of those just after you've paid for one lot of heating oil, and by the next year you'll have a big lump sum - with interest - to pay for it.

suki1964

Oil is not always cheaper in the summer, it's 3p a litre cheaper now then August

I would tell the gvt to !!!!!! off and meddle somewhere else. I'm perfectly capable of ringing around, keeping an eye on price and buying when it suits me

Here in NI , 64% of us live in rural areas and for most that means oil. It's only In the past 7/8 years that gas has been rolled out, and that's only in towns.

Perhaps the gvt would take a look at why gas is only being rolled out so far? And why aren't companies doing more to roll it out further?

But then this is NI. We can't get ( fast ) broadband, all electricity and phone lines ( out of the cities) are over head and so that new fangled mains gas, might just take off come the 22nd century

Better_Days

suki1964 wrote: »

Oil is not always cheaper in the summer, it's 3p a litre cheaper now then August

All things being equal oil is usually cheaper in the summer as demand is lower. The price of oil has 'tanked' now as the price of oil on the world market has dropped substantially from about $115 a barrel in June to about $80 a barrel now.