Running Out of Heating Oil or Propane? How to Get Emergency Delivery Help
If your home runs on heating oil or propane, there's no shutoff notice to warn you. The tank just runs low. This guide covers how to ask for emergency fuel help before it runs dry, what federal law says about how fast crisis help must come, and how to stay safe while you wait.
AT A GLANCE
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Why delivered fuel is different
With gas and electric service, USAGov notes that each state has rules on when a utility can disconnect you, sometimes based on the weather. Heating oil and propane don't work that way. You buy fuel by the delivery, and when the tank is empty the heat stops. Usually nobody sends a warning letter first.
That means the most important step is timing. Check your tank gauge regularly once the weather turns cold. Start asking for help while there's still fuel left, not after the furnace goes quiet.
With delivered fuel, there's no shutoff notice. Your warning is the tank gauge, so check it often and ask for help before it hits empty.
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What fuel costs this fall
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) collects weekly heating oil and propane prices only during the heating season, October through March. These are its residential prices for the week of October 19, 2026.
Fuel and area | Price per gallon | Change from a year ago |
|---|---|---|
Heating oil, U.S. average | $6.190 | Up $2.664 |
Heating oil, New England | $6.112 | Up $2.666 |
Propane, U.S. average | $2.689 | Up $0.256 |
Propane, New England | $3.872 | Up $0.417 |
Propane, Midwest | $2.156 | Up $0.236 |
Your dealer's price may be different, but at these averages a partial fill costs a lot of money. That's why it's worth applying for regular LIHEAP heating help as early as your state allows, and asking about crisis help as soon as you know you can't pay for the next delivery.
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How LIHEAP crisis help works
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) is federally funded and run by states, tribes and territories. The federal Administration for Children and Families (ACF) says LIHEAP helps with home energy bills, energy crises, weatherization and minor energy-related home repairs. ACF's heating page adds that LIHEAP funds can help repair or replace heating equipment.
Each state sets its own income limits and application process. USAGov says eligibility is based on income, every state and territory has its own requirements, and some offices take applications online while others want you to apply in person.
The federal response deadlines
Section 2604(c) of the LIHEAP law (42 U.S.C. 8623(c)) requires each state to set aside crisis money and sets these rules for its crisis program:
Rule | What the law says |
|---|---|
Standard crisis | If you're eligible, some form of help that will resolve the crisis within 48 hours after you apply |
Life-threatening crisis | If you're eligible and in a life-threatening situation, some form of help within 18 hours after you apply |
Where you apply | Application sites must be geographically accessible to everyone in the area served |
If you can't get out | People who are physically infirm must have a way to apply without leaving home, or a way to travel to the site |
Reserved funds | A reasonable amount must be held back for crisis help until March 15 of each program year |
These deadlines can be suspended in areas under a declared natural disaster or emergency if federal officials decide meeting them isn't practical. And "some form of assistance" doesn't always mean a full tank. It's whatever the program decides will resolve the crisis.
When you call, say clearly that you have a heating emergency. If someone in your home is elderly, very young, disabled or medically fragile, or if you're already out of fuel in freezing weather, say so. That can bring the 18-hour rule into play.
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A state example: Pennsylvania's 2026/27 rules
Crisis rules vary a lot from state to state, but Pennsylvania's 2026/27 fact sheet for fuel vendors shows the kind of details that matter for delivered fuel:
Pennsylvania rule | Details from the 2026/27 fact sheet |
|---|---|
Season | Monday, November 2, 2026 through Friday, April 23, 2027 |
Crisis grant amount | $25 up to a season maximum of $1,000 |
Who qualifies | Households without heat, or within 15 days of being without heat, because of lack of fuel or a utility termination |
How much fuel | Enough to resolve the emergency, such as the amount needed to fill the tank one time |
How to ask | You must request Crisis help from your County Assistance Office (CAO), which contacts the vendor to authorize it each time |
What it won't pay for | A delivery the CAO didn't authorize, or an emergency that was resolved before the CAO reached the vendor |
Automatic delivery | Contact the CAO before an automatic delivery resolves the emergency |
Helpline | 1-866-857-7095 |
The fact sheet also says fuel credits from a regular LIHEAP cash grant must be used before Crisis can be authorized, unless the money can go to repairs or service by the vendor. A household can get more than one Crisis authorization in a season, up to the $1,000 total. It also notes that weatherization could include repairing broken heating equipment.
Your state's rules may look quite different. The lesson that carries over is that the order matters. Call the assistance office first, and let it set up the delivery with your dealer.
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Step by step: getting an emergency delivery
Check your gauge and estimate how long you have. Write down the reading and the date. That tells the assistance office how urgent your situation is.
Find your LIHEAP office. Use ACF's state and territory contact list, EnergyHelp.us, or the NEAR line at 1-866-674-6327 on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern.
Say you have a heating emergency. Ask whether your state has a separate crisis program and whether you need a separate application.
Mention anyone at higher risk. Tell them about older adults, young children, disabilities or medical needs in your home.
Give your fuel dealer's details. In programs like Pennsylvania's, the office works directly with the vendor. Have the dealer's name, phone and your account number ready.
Don't order a delivery on your own and expect to be paid back. Ask the office whether it will authorize the delivery first.
Call your dealer after the office approves. Ask when the truck is coming and how many gallons are authorized.
Ask about repairs if the problem is your equipment. Crisis or weatherization funds may be able to cover repairs to a broken furnace or boiler.
Apply for the regular heating benefit too. A crisis grant fixes this week. The regular benefit helps with the rest of the season.
Before you call
☐ Your tank gauge reading and the date you checked it
☐ Your fuel dealer's name, phone number and your account number
☐ Recent delivery tickets or a statement showing what you owe
☐ ID for the person applying
☐ Proof of household income, in whatever form your state asks for
☐ Names and birth dates of everyone in the home
☐ Notes on anyone with a medical condition, disability or very young age
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Staying safe while you wait
When the heat is low or off, people take risks to stay warm, and some of those risks are deadly. These points come from the CDC, the U.S. Fire Administration and Ready.gov.
Do | Don't |
|---|---|
Install battery-operated or battery back-up CO detectors near every sleeping area | Heat your home with a gas oven or stovetop |
Keep anything that can burn at least 3 feet from space heaters, fireplaces, wood stoves and radiators | Leave a space heater on when you leave the room or go to bed |
Run a generator only outdoors, more than 20 feet from windows, doors and vents | Use a generator inside your home or garage, even with doors open |
Have your heating system serviced by a qualified technician every year | Use a portable gas camp stove or burn charcoal indoors |
The CDC says the most common symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are headache, dizziness, weakness, upset stomach, vomiting, chest pain and confusion, which are often described as "flu-like." People who are asleep can die from CO before they ever feel symptoms.
The U.S. Fire Administration reports that portable heater fires made up only 3% of home heating fires in 2017–2019, but 41% of the deadly ones.
Watch for cold-weather illness too. Ready.gov says a body temperature below 95 degrees is an emergency. Signs of hypothermia include shivering, exhaustion, confusion, fumbling hands, memory loss, slurred speech and drowsiness. If you see them, get the person somewhere warm, warm the center of the body first and wrap them in dry blankets.
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Longer-term fixes
If you burn through fuel every winter, the Weatherization Assistance Program may help you use less. The Department of Energy says households at or below 200% of the poverty guidelines, or receiving SSI, are eligible under DOE guidelines, and states may use LIHEAP's 60% of state median income limit instead. Priority goes to older adults, people with disabilities, families with children and high-energy-use households. Renters can apply with the landlord's permission. Expect a waitlist, so apply well before next winter.
WHAT TO DO THIS WEEK
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Related help
Our guide to the free weatherization program explains what the work includes and how the waitlist works. If you have a gas or electric shutoff notice too, see what to do in the first 72 hours. And if you can't find your local office, calling 211 can connect you with local fuel funds and charities.
Official sources
Last checked: October 23, 2026 (EIA prices for the week of October 19, 2026; ACF LIHEAP pages; Pennsylvania 2026/27 LIHEAP fact sheet).
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