Anyone who heats with heating oil, pellets or liquid gas can now also hope for government support – provided that the prices have more than doubled.
As far as relief from high heating costs is concerned, the federal government has so far primarily focused on gas customers – after all, natural gas has been the scarcest energy commodity in recent months. Reduced VAT, deductions shouldered by the state, price brakes: the traffic light coalition came up with all of this for gas customers. And as of this Tuesday, she also has an idea for households that heat with oil, pellets or liquid gas.
A hardship fund for “non-line-bound fuels” is to be created for this. Households that heat with such substances – usually oil or wood pellets – can apply for reimbursement of additional costs. Provided that these have more than doubled in 2022, measured against a reference price from the previous year. 80 percent of what goes beyond this doubling would then be reimbursed. That in turn would be analogous to the gas price brake, which should ultimately freeze the gas price even if it doubles the previous price.
In view of the price development, this could affect many households. For example, while the average price of heating oil last year was around 60 euros, in October it was 126 euros per hectolitre. The upper limit per household is 2000 euros in aid, the lower limit is 100 euros. In the case of multi-family houses, the landlords must submit a declaration that they actually pass on the relief to the tenants.
The federal government is to provide a total of 1.8 billion euros via the Economic Stabilization Fund, and the distribution is to be made by the federal states. “In this way, we specifically cushion cases of hardship,” says SPD parliamentary group leader Matthias Miersch. Especially in rural areas, where there are no gas lines, heating media such as oil and pellets are very common. “A basic need for energy remains affordable,” says Miersch.