AIBU to be worried about rising fuel and energy costs this winter?

I have just put £22 petrol in my car to drive 100 miles. Luckily I have only done 100 miles this week. But got to drop eldest back to uni tomorrow. I'm going to keep my car topped up. £100 to fill it up is going to be too depressing

For once being a non driver pays off.

We're lucky to live centrally and stopped running a car years ago but we will never be able to afford to run one again. Not with the rising costs everywhere else.

Our utilities are going up by £104 per annum (well this is the current personalised figure Octopus gave me) which isn't too bad?

It is all bad, bad, bad news though. I think the vast majority need to be prepared for lean times ahead.

Yup NI, we can buy any amount from 100 litres from a delivery company or buy at the pump in a lot of petrol stations. It's just as expensive to buy at the pump at the moment, usually you get it a few pence cheaper.

Despite having a low income!

Same here.

But that NMW is needed for people to be able to live and afford rent, utilities and food.

More housing needs to be built so the relative price of housing falls over time and people feel better off. Public transport prices also need to drop.

I've applied but not eligible as I don't claim benefits

Only if you are on benefits. I’m on a low income but can’t claim anything so don’t qualify.

Except that you’d no longer be eligible for free NHS care!

Ps to those with heating oil most councils have help available to those in need.

It’s not always the greed of big companies. We sell a product to the supermarket most people will put in their basket weekly. The supermarkets know our input costs down to the penny. They effectively pay us a guarantee margin. They know how many man hours it takes to produce x or our product. Every single hour is charged at NMW. Not a penny more for management, experience, overtime, housing or unsociable hours.

Every time the cost of NMW goes up the cost of what you buy in the supermarket goes up.

In reality, what happens is that the cost of UK produce gets so expensive consumers and businesses go elsewhere. It’s doubtful clothes makers in china are paid a decent NMW. Farmers in other parts of the world definitely don’t have the standards we do. The salmonella outbreak at the moment is partly caused because it’s cheaper to import Ukrainian egg than buy British.

Are you in NI? In England the minimum order is 500 litres so an eye wateringly expensive amount to fork out at once.

Trump has lot to answer for.

I think it was actually more than that earlier this year. It’s normally around 68p a lite plus VAT.

It’s horrendous being on oil and there’s no financial help.

Yup - I’m basically being extremely frugal with my oil heating on and just saving my supply for the coming winter. I have an electric blanket which is pretty cheap to run and keeps me warm at my desk and during the evenings.

I use electricity sparingly already though my standing charge is a third of the bill annoyingly. Rarely put the oven on as I have an air fryer.

My mum lives rurally and doesn't have gas, so has an oil tank instead for her central heating. She enquired a few weeks ago about getting it topped up for winter, and was quoted 99p per litre. She says that's the most it's ever been in 15 years of living there! It's normally somewhere between 70-80p. As a result, she cut her order size down, and just got a bit. She's hoping the prices drop a bit, and then she'll top up again.
Fortunately, she's not short of money, so it doesn't really matter a jot if she ends up paying more, but for her it was more the principle of the thing.

The petrol station nearest me was 171 this morning. It's usually one of the cheapest in town.

I've just been looking at my Octopus account online. I was loads in credit, so I've requested a refund, and reduced my direct debit by £18. I'd rather keep my money in my own account, thanks.

I know all fuel is more expensive, but home heating oil is given much less attention and users are really suffering. Between December 2025 and March 2026, the price per litre almost tripled. I was lucky in needing a to fill up when the conflict was a little quieter (July), at which point it was just over double what I'd paid in December. Then Trump dropped more bombs and the price has risen again. At least with gas/electricity, you can get a fixed price for a period of time. With oil, there is absolutely no control. And, due to the laws around distribution of oil and calibration of delivery vehicles, you can rarely order less than 500 litres.

I think we can blame the government in some ways. We didnt get a pay rise when they increased national insurance for business. Costs for businesses are rising (some of which are the governments fault) which means no pay rises.

Were i work has made a loss for 2 years. Luckily the family that own it are happy to invest to keep it running or 400 of us would lose our jobs.

It's shit. I'm a cleaner and have to use my little 13 year old car to get to my customers who are mainly rural and very spaced out. It's starting to get to the point where there's no point in going to work. I can't put my prices up as I'm already losing customers who are also suffering with the cost of living.

It's definitely encouraging me to only do essential journeys. However im rural so the car is our only means of transport. Also have a long journey to get ds to uni. I'm looking to buy a super mini car longer term.

We didn't have our heating bearly on two years ago. Last year it was set at 16. I was never cold as a child. Something I can't provide for my kids dispite being relatively much better off than my parents.

The only people who can use buses are those in cities . I don’t even have a bus service.