Around 1,700 heating oil customers in the UK will receive compensation of up to £350 each after suppliers cancelled their orders during last year's Middle East conflict, when prices surged as much as 92% to 123p per litre. The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the national competition watchdog, found that suppliers scrapped existing contracts and offered replacements at significantly higher prices, leaving vulnerable rural households — many of whom rely on heating oil rather than mains gas — without fuel or facing steep additional costs. Several suppliers have agreed to compensate affected customers, though the CMA warned it is prepared to pursue court-based enforcement action against those that refuse, and has called on the government to introduce a new regulatory regime with minimum standards and independent dispute resolution for the sector.