Households with oil heating are suffering increased costs due to conflict in the Middle East. Oil prices are highly exposed to rapid, sudden price increases when the cost of wholesale oil rises, as it has done significantly over the past month due to the war in Iran and supply problems in the Strait of Hormuz.

Posting to X, Paul Lewis Money, a financial journalist, says: “1,000 litres of heating oil in England would currently cost an average of £1,349 compared with £614 before war began, a rise of 120% (boilerjuice figures).” In March, the Government announced a £53million support package for households hit by the new energy crisis caused by the conflict. Earlier in the month, Martin Lewis MSE reported that some of the 1.5million households who rely on heating oil are being forced to pay extra administration or service charges for their heating oil, on top of already spiralling costs.

According to Oil Fast, for the average household, it would take around six months to use 1,000 litres of oil for heating, depending on usage and property size.

This is based on a standard 3-bedroom semi-detached or detached home with a family of 3 to 4 people.

At current rates, heating your home costs an extra £122.50 per month, which adds up to a huge £1,470 more per year compared to pre-war prices.

The issue of rising prices is notable in Northern Ireland, where about 500,000 homes use it, almost two-thirds of all households.

In Great Britain, about 3.6% of households use heating oil — 760,000 in England, 140,000 in Scotland and 110,000 in Wales.

Some heating oil customers say their costs have doubled since the outbreak of the US-Israel war with Iran and the competition watchdog has launched a probe into “concerning reports”, says BBC.

The Competitions and Markets Authority reported that heating oil suppliers are cancelling orders and increasing prices, behaviour which the prime minister called “completely unacceptable”.

The Prime Minister acknowledged the impact of rising oil and gas prices on households in the UK.

He announced the Government had issued a “legal direction” to energy companies to pass on savings from government policies already announced.

And he set out the £53million package of support for “vulnerable” heating oil customers, focused on “those households that are most exposed”.

Oil heating is commonly used in rural areas where many homes are not connected to a gas grid network.

Like LPG (liquid petroleum gas), heating oil is delivered by road and stored in a tank.