Britain plans to regulate heating oil market for first time, accepting CMA advice

LONDON — Britain's government said it will accept the Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) recommendation to strengthen regulation of the heating oil sector, under plans to regulate the market for the first time and give households clearer routes to compensation.

The CMA found that 1,700 households were owed compensation after suppliers cancelled their orders when prices rose earlier this year, forcing them to re-order heating oil at higher prices, the government said. It had provided $70.2 million (53 million pounds sterling) in immediate support to vulnerable heating oil customers.

The government said it will work with industry to develop a regulatory regime for the heating oil market. In the short term, it will strengthen consumer protections in industry Codes of Conduct and review practices that set minimum order volumes at 500 litres for some consumers. "Energy is an essential good and people should not have to think twice about whether they're protected in the market," Minister for Energy Consumers Polly Billington said.