Elderly neighbours denied fuel oil delivery -health & safety

[sarahj]

Any suggestions. Elderly neighbours live in listed mid terrace, garden at the back with oil tank. Double fronted house but only one room deep. Original Stone flags in hallway. In the past the oil pipe was laid through the hall and filled up the tank at the back. This happened for other neighbours too. Delivery man made them sign a disclaimer. Now new delivery man won't do it at all, and they have almost no oil left and don't know what to do.

Can they have a feeder pipe laid underneath the flags or have they got to change their fuel? No access to the back garden from the back as it is against an english heritage site. Garden too small for tank at front.

 

[Nemesis]

Nasty!

Have they called the head office of the firm concerned? (And Age Concern...)

 

[Flyfisher]

I bet there is no actual rule/law that prevents such a thing. What is usually required for H&S is a 'risk assessment', based on which various actions can be taken, or not, as the case may be. I would start the risk assessment with a statement that the proposed method of refuelling the oil tank (i.e. pipe though the house) has been carried out for the past xx years with no incidents of leakage or other danger. Since nothing materially has changed, the proposed method must be as safe as it ever was and there is no reason to believe it has suddenly become unsafe.

I would then write to the MD of the oil company concerned and ask why his company is suddenly refusing to refuel the oil tank in the time-honoured and proven-to-be-safe manner. I would also ask what steps the company propose to take to help prevent these elderly people from suffering hypothermia this winter due to his company's refusal to supply their heating oil. I would probably also write to the local, and maybe national, papers.

Absolutely bl**dy ridiculous.

 

[Nemesis]

Hexham Courant then???

Shall I call the Editor???

 

[Penners]

All good advice above. I would also call a few alternative suppliers - I can't believe that they'd all be such Jobsworths.

 

[sarahj]

hi all,

thanks for your replies, although it does seem jobsworth it's actually true and required by legislation as well as another thing - you have to be able to see the tank fill indicator from the point at which you are doing the filling.

here is the legislation, although they do suggest solutions:

http://www.oftec.org/faqs_storage_tanks.htm

Neither of these can be done before the next fill is required, unfortunately. I have offered that next door can take the pipe through our garage and over the back wall, and they have offered to siphon some over the wall to the elderly neighbours!

Sarah

 

[Gareth Hughes]

hi all,

thanks for your replies, although it does seem jobsworth it's actually true and required by legislation as well as another thing - you have to be able to see the tank fill indicator from the point at which you are doing the filling.

here is the legislation, although they do suggest solutions:

http://www.oftec.org/faqs_storage_tanks.htm

Neither of these can be done before the next fill is required, unfortunately. I have offered that next door can take the pipe through our garage and over the back wall, and they have offered to siphon some over the wall to the elderly neighbours!

Sarah

Does the reference to Scotland in the query on that page relating to this specific issue have any bearing (given that the churchwarden in an earlier putative query is in England - otherwise why embroider with such irrelevant details)? Is this a purely Scottish requirement, and is this a Scottish oil-deliverer coming south over the border and quoting regulations that don't apply in England?

 

[Flyfisher]

I knew about new regulations regarding oil storage tanks as I (briefly) looked into them before deciding to get a gas connection. But I'm very surprised that they seem to have been applied retrospectively - it must affect thousands of people, many of whom may be quite vunerable. I'm afraid I stand by my earlier comment.

 

[Penners]

Well, although our oil supplier doesn't have to bring the hose through the house, he certainly can't see the tank level indicator from where the lorry has to stop. It's round the back of the garage.

He's never said a word to me about this. And, as Flyfisher says, there must thousands, if not millions, of people with the same situation.