Get prepared for winter
BY BUZZ
The oil distribution industry trade association, FPS (Federation of Petroleum Suppliers), is urging people to get their oil early in case of bad weather.
Last year many people were caught out by the poor conditions after leaving it to the last minute to fill up. Now is the perfect time to work out what you are going to need for the winter months as the price of oil is lower and is in less demand. Increased demand in the follow up to Christmas can often lead to delays.
Chief Executive of the FPS, Mark Askew said: “Our members understand that times are hard and people may want to wait before ordering fuel but many oil distributors run payment schemes to encourage customers to have bigger, less frequent deliveries but then spread the payments out over the whole year, helping both financially and ensuring homeowners don’t run out of fuel when winter hits.”
He adds: “Our members remind customers that they should order early, but people have got into a pattern of ordering the minimum quantity. Customers last year had a trend of ordering 500 litres and then ran out in the middle of the worst snow, when tanker drivers just couldn’t get to them. We are trying to educate people to think ahead and be prepared.”
This new initiative is being backed by Government Ministers and key consumer groups.
Energy Minister Charles Hendry said: “The early snow last December shows that it is better to stock up before the winter, when suppliers have spare delivery capacity and prices are likely to be lower than when demand is higher.”
