Heating oil order cancelled due to Middle East conflict? Compensation to be offered – AND support finally confirmed in Northern Ireland

The 1.5 million households across the UK who use heating oil – as well as LPG – to heat their homes and water have to buy their fuel in an unregulated market, meaning they are often subjected to unfair prices and poor customer service. Unlike gas and electricity consumers, their prices are not protected by the Energy Price Cap.

In March, we collected a dossier of complaints based on 1,000s of responses from people reporting being hit by extreme price rises and sharp practices, with firms cancelling orders and demanding extra payments. We passed this on to both the regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

At the time, the UK Government promised help to LPG and heating oil users. Yet while funding was made available to apply for in England, Scotland and Wales, consumers in Northern Ireland have been in limbo waiting for their equivalent scheme to open.

Hundreds of people will now get their money back – though details remain scant

The CMA announced on Friday 28 August that it had ordered heating oil suppliers to compensate an estimated 1,700 people who had their orders cancelled when heating oil prices surged, and then either had to re-buy it at an inflated cost or simply went without the necessary fuel.

We've pushed the CMA for more details on how the compensation scheme will work – but here's what we currently know:

• Had your order cancelled and you paid more for replacement heating oil? You'll be refunded the difference between the original price and the replacement price. The CMA estimates customers may have paid between £150 and £350 more for replacement heating oil, but said it can't yet provide an average redress figure.

• Had your order cancelled but didn't buy replacement oil? You'll have your original order honoured at the originally agreed price.

• You'll only receive compensation if your supplier joins the scheme. The CMA wouldn't give us a list of the suppliers involved.

• If you're affected, you'll be notified either by email or by phone. It's unclear if this communication will come from the CMA itself or from your supplier, and the CMA refused to tell us how consumers can ensure the contact is legitimate and not a scam.
  
  The CMA said that around 800 people have been contacted so far. You'll need to provide evidence of your replacement order, such as a receipt and delivery note.
  
  If you think you're impacted but haven't heard anything, you can reach out to your supplier to check.

• LPG customers are not included. This is despite us reporting in June that LPG users were also being hit with sudden price hikes as a result of the increase in oil prices. This includes some cases who said their prices had been hiked despite being locked into multi-year contracts.

Northern Ireland heating oil £100 support confirmed

Separately, the Northern Ireland Executive has this week finally confirmed details of a financial support scheme for heating oil users on qualifying benefits or who are single or part of a couple, including pensioners, with a net annual income below £30,000 after tax, National Insurance or pension contributions.

Under the scheme, which opens on Wednesday 9 September, you'll be able to apply online for a £100 voucher to help you buy home heating oil. It's thought some 340,000 households will be eligible. Full details on who is eligible and how to apply can be found on the Northern Ireland Executive's website. The deadline is 31 March 2027.

Roughly two-thirds of homes in Northern Ireland – around 500,000 – rely on heating oil, and thousands more rely on LPG.