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Wed, 09 Sep 2026

Wed, 09 Sep 2026 'We were target of sinister heating oil theft and want to warn others'

A charity is warning about the risk of home heating oil thefts after falling victim to the crime.

* Kate Clifford, director of the Rural Community Network (RCN), said her charity's heat was not working and they discovered their oil tank had been stolen.
* There have been 600 reports of oil and fuel thefts in Northern Ireland since 2021, with a recent spike in incidents around the time of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
* The Consumer Council for Northern Ireland says oil prices often rise during energy crises, making it more attractive to thieves.
* Raymond Gormley, head of energy policy at the Consumer Council, recommends installing locks or alarms on oil tanks and fitting hardened flexible casings to fuel hoses.
* Almost two-thirds (62.5%) of homes in Northern Ireland use oil for heating, with rural households being particularly vulnerable due to their reliance on a single fuel source stored outside the home.
* Clifford believes that home heating oil theft highlights a wider inequality facing rural Northern Ireland, where neighbors often look out for each other but may not always report suspicious activity.
* The PSNI warns that fuel tanks can be seen as "easy pickings" for thieves and advises taking precautions such as locking and disguising tanks, fitting audible alarms, and installing security lighting and CCTV.