[ciscokid]

First time post.

Does anyone know how to apply for the Government £100 heating oil to be added onto my EON Next account.

Apparently if you use heating oil as your main supply of heat you can get £100 added to your electricity account. Has anyone does this yet.

Thanks

[retrotecchie]

@ciscokid

They haven't sorted the heating oil thing yet. I'm on oil here in Wales. Apparently we are supposed to get £100 towards our oil bills but it's not going to be as a credit on the 'leccy as far as I am aware. Possibly a voucher redeemable with Certas or Boilerjuice or whoever your oil supplier may be.

As it happens, despite oil prices going up significantly, oil currently works out at about 7p per kWh with no standing charges. I wouldn't go back to gas now, even if it was an option in my area. Sure, I'd love to be paying 28p (2.7p per kWh) a litre as I was in 2015, but that ship has long sailed.

[retrotecchie]

Ben Lake, my local MP asked the question in the House of Commons this afternoon, as did Mark Harper representing the Forest of Dean.

No definitive response as of yet from the Chancellor, but the issue is being discussed. Ben Lake is constantly pushing the issue as the majority of his constituents are oil-fired.

Ben sends me regular updates, so If I hear of any progress, I'll update here.

[ciscokid]

@retrotecchie Thanks very much for that

[retrotecchie]

As I understand it thus far, the original notion was to provide some kind of assistance to folks in Northern Ireland, perhaps £100. The majority of the population there are on heating oil. The two MPs I mentioned previously gave it 'hang on a mo...what about off grid customers on the mainland?'.

So, the idea is going to be extended to all oil users anywhere in the UK. Good, so far.

The problem is, there is no 'grid' for oil and oil users have to buy oil up front from a plethora of suppliers. Just like going to buy a pint of milk...you pay cash up front, but can get it from your local corner shop, the Texaco down the road or in a chain supermarket.

So, coming up with a method of making payments to oil users that is universal...you can spend them with your local oil supplier, a facilitator like Boilerjuice, or a big nationwide energy company like Certas. An additional credit on the 'leccy was one idea mooted, but there would be issues proving you are an oil user as there is no central registry of oil customers. A voucher that you can only spend against an oil delivery was thought to be less subject to 'fiddling'.

The other subject for debate is the amount suggested. Oil prices have gone up since Putin kicked off, but oil still works out cheaper per kWh than gas, so this is why £100 has been mooted. Jacob Rees-Muppet seems to think £100 is more than enough, but Ben Lake says that is too low, on the basis that the minimum delivery is 500 litres and customers have to pay up front. My delivery of 500 litres in June last year cost me about £240. Today's prices are not far shy of £450 for the same amount, so Ben is pushing for £200 so we can have less of an up-front hit on our wallets.

So the system will need to be very different to gas/electricity subsidies where the customer is billed monthly in arrears or pays a regular Direct Debit.

As I say, Ben emails me regularly with transcripts of discussions in the relevant committees so as soon as I hear anything worth passing on, I shall do so.

[DebF_EONNext]

Hey @ciscokid,

I'm Deb one of the Community Co-ordinators, it's lovely to meet you, is this your first time visiting the Community?

We haven't had any information regarding this yet. I'm up in rural Scotland, also off grid for gas too so I am eagerly waiting for news on this myself. We have LPG for our cooker & wood/coal to heat the house it gets expensive when you have to buy in bulk!

[retrotecchie]

A bit of a discussion on the BBC News this afternoon. Nothing has been settled yet, but the money saving 'expert' was still mentioning vouchers off your 'leccy. This now appears to be the method favoured by the Treasury, but how exactly it will be put into operation is still not known.

But the main point was...nothing has yet been decided. According to the Government:

Alternative Fuel Payments (domestic)

This scheme is intended to deliver a one-off payment of £100 to UK households who are not on the mains gas grid and therefore use alternative fuels, such as heating oil, to heat their homes. Powers will enable the government to deliver support via electricity bills in both GB and NI, under a similar delivery model to the Energy Bills Support Scheme. The payment will ensure that a typical customer using heating oil does not face a higher rate of growth in their heating costs since last winter, in comparison to those using mains gas who are supported by the Energy Price Guarantee. The government will set out the timing of this payment soon.

[retrotecchie]

Payment mechanism

The government issued an update on the scheme on Wednesday last week, announcing that the mechanism for this payment will be in the form of a credit to electricity bills, but it is still not yet clear when it will be paid, with a statement only referring to ‘this winter’.
“Households eligible for these payments will receive £100 as a credit on their electricity bill this winter,” the statement said.

“The £100 payment has been calculated to ensure that a typical customer using heating oil does not face a higher rate of growth in their heating costs since last winter, in comparison to those using mains gas who are supported by the Energy Price Guarantee,” it continued.

Assisting the government

With the heating oil market structured very differently to that for gas and electricity, the trade association for the liquid fuel distribution industry, UKIFDA, has been working with the government to help advise on the most effective and immediate way to administer the funds to heating oil users.
Following yesterday’s announcement UKIFDA released the following statement.
“UKIFDA, the trade body for the liquid fuel distribution industry, notes the government announcement this morning confirming that the £100 fixed payment to heating oil users will be made via electricity companies.
“Through multiple discussions with the government, it became clear that because of the highly competitive nature of the heating oil market with customers holding multiple accounts through different distributors and outlets, a quick method of payment through these accounts without duplication was not possible.
“We will continue to offer assistance to the government in the design of the payment system through electricity companies. This will take time and customers should await further details from the government. We also note that eligible customers that do not have a relationship with an electricity supplier will be supported through an alternative route to make sure they do not miss out. Details of this alternative route will be confirmed by the government shortly.
“As before we recommend that customers do not wait if they need heating oil. As we head into winter, many oil heating customers will know that the best and most economical approach is to talk to their local distributors on a regular basis and not leave purchases to the last minute”

Further intervention

The payment will also go to people who use LPG, coal and biomass as their main heating fuel but it is not clear how people will be expected to prove they use these forms of heating.
The government also said it would continue to monitor the prices of alternative fuels, such as heating oil, and would consider further intervention if required.

[Treetopspeter]

Still waiting…?

[retrotecchie]

@Treetopspeter

The amount as announced in the Chancellors Autumn Statement has been increased from £100 to £200. Apparently payable as a credit to your electricity bill. Still waiting for a decision on when this will be and how it is to be administered.