Price of fuel oil per gallon today

Click the link for my 2017 warming oil price predictions and forecast.

There clearly was a period lately when home owners could save yourself a significant amount of money to their home heating oil bills by pre-buying their particular oil for the upcoming winter season.

Warming organizations benefited since they decreased their danger publicity from customers perhaps not spending money on deliveries, in addition to clients gained by getting a to 15 cent per gallon discount throughout the fluctuating “cash cost” or “spot cost” at the time the distribution contract ended up being signed (industry price for heating oil at the time of the delivery).

This repayment alternative worked perfectly for both the client while the oil delivery company from concerning the year 1999 to 2007 as the price of oil rose with general consistency.

But because payment option had been gaining in appeal, the buying price of oil rose dramatically by early 2008 home heating oil expense over $4.50/gallon in lots of parts of the country.

Residents who had been locked-in towards the lower pre-pay cost (myself included) enjoyed cost savings of over $2.00/gallon although some had no choice but to pay the entire market price.

Distribution organizations had been often “on the hook” to get enough oil at greater wholesale prices just so they really could turnaround and offer it at reduced agreed upon contractual cost they'd due to their pre-paid consumers. Customers whom missed on the pre-buy alternative in which equally bitter towards move in oil costs.

Delivery Companies Change Their Tactics:

It had been during this period that customers truly started to perpetuate the concept that it was “always” safer to pre-pay for warming oil deliveries to guard yourself from increasing oil costs. There have been even financial institutions during this time period that offered loans sold designed for consumers who wished to pre-pay for his or her home heating oil but didn’t have the money on hand to do this. Loan individuals thought they might save yourself more money by pre-buying their heating oil than they'd need to pay in interest for the gas loan.

Recognizing the temperature that consumers had for prepaid home heating oil distribution contracts (and to protect by themselves from future swings in marketplace costs), oil distribution businesses began raising the general costs of these pre-buy oil delivery agreements. Rather than providing the gas at 5 cent to 15 penny discounts over the everyday money rates, the delivery businesses began charging much more money per gallon to pre-buy home heating oil becoming delivered later on on the home heating period.

As well as charging you the client more income per gallon of oil to pre-buy the upcoming winter months heating season, heating oil delivery organizations included several brand-new charges to “protect” the consumer from extreme increases and decreases in warming oil rates.

For example, if you prepaid for your home heating oil at .00/gallon and also you paid an extra 25 cents per gallon for “downside protection”, might never ever pay above .00/gallon when the oil was delivered, if the daily cash price dropped below $3.00 you'd pay whichever that cost was. The drawback of course is that the normal price of warming oil over the entire length of the heating season will have to drop below $2.75/gallon for you yourself to break even.

While these “downside” and “upside” protection choices seem like a good idea for consumer, these are typically actually another way of moving the danger out of the delivery company and help them further take advantage of the belief consumers have that it is “always” more straightforward to pre-buy your house home heating oil. There’s absolutely nothing wrong by what they’re doing, they’re simply charging what folks are willing to spend.

Current Heating Oil Rates Programs:

Currently (6/03/15), my local home heating oil company in Northern New The united kingdomt is charging $2.85/gallon for pre-buy agreement while their existing “spot rate” or “day price” delivery pricing is just $2.55/gallon.

Furthermore $0.30/gallon advanced to pre-buy oil, my local oil distribution company is charging you $0.25/gallon for “downside security” to guard you if cost of oil in fact does drop while you're nevertheless getting your pre-bought deliveries.

To put it differently, I would personally end up having to pay .10/gallon to pre-buy my home heating oil vs. having to pay just $2.55/gallon to fill up my container these days (assuming the price tag on oil couldn't change). The only way i might come out ahead pre-buying my home heating oil (with disadvantage protection factored in) could be if the daily “cash cost” of heating oil rose above .10/gallon. I just don’t see a fair situation where warming oil goes up above .10/gallon during the autumn of 2015 and winter months of 2016.

Previously it made sense to pre-buy your house heating oil, however, oil delivery businesses tend to be taking advantage of consumer’s brand-new perception that “it helps make good sense to pre-buy warming oil” by charging more plus every year to pre-buy the oil vs. having to pay the everyday delivery price when you really need the oil.

Just last year, the pre-buy cost had been 15 cents greater than the money price. This year it's 30 dollars higher.

Should You Pre-buy Your Home Heating Oil for 2016:

When it comes to 2015-2016 heating period, I would just think about pre-buying easily can secure at a price not as much as $2.30/gallon, and I wouldn't spend any additional for “downside protection”.