Heating & Fuel
With heating oil, wood pellets and firewood, fake shops are especially dangerous because they usually demand high advance payments for large delivery quantities. Consumer advice centres observe this scam clustering in winter and in phases of sharply risen energy prices, when many households are actively looking for low-cost suppliers.
Clearly seasonal: a marked surge in the autumn and winter months and in times of sharply risen energy prices, when demand for cheap heating material is particularly high.
Typical scams for Heating & Fuel
- A newly registered shop advertises heating oil, pellets or firewood at a price well below the current market level of comparable suppliers.
- Full advance payment for the entire delivery quantity is demanded by bank transfer, often citing supposed supply shortages meant to suggest the need for quick action.
- After payment, the delivery is postponed again and again until contact with the supplier breaks off entirely.
- The shop sometimes poses as a supposed regional fuel dealer without any traceable company address or delivery region at all.
What to watch out for especially with Heating & Fuel
The price per litre/tonne is conspicuously below what reputable price-comparison portals show for the region.
Advance payment for the full delivery quantity is demanded exclusively, with no partial payment or payment on delivery.
The imprint gives no traceable warehouse address or delivery logistics for heating oil/pellets/firewood.
The shop has only recently come online and was evidently set up specifically for the current heating season.
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