If you are storing oil or another fuel at home or your business premises, it is important that you understand the UK regulations you must follow to avoid breaking the law and potentially incurring a fine.
UK fuel oil storage regulations are crucial guidelines for safely storing oil at home or work to prevent pollution and protect the environment. The regulations are different depending on where you store your oil and whether the oil is being stored at home or a workplace. They will also vary depending on how much you are storing, but key requirements generally include compliance with building regulations and using approved tanks.
Oil storage containers include tanks, drums, intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) and mobile containers (bowsers).
The person responsible for the property or premises is the person legally responsible for the oil storage container, which would usually be either the homeowner, business owner or site manager. They are responsible for any problems caused by the oil storage and should be familiar with the regulations and with their own storage tank – including where it is located and how it is protected.
In England, the Environment Agency can serve an anti-pollution works notice to make you bring your tank up to the legal standard.
You can find comprehensive information about the regulations on Gov.uk.
Storing oil at home
At home, you normally have to follow building regulations if you have an oil storage container. Although if your oil tank can hold more the 3,501 litres, you would be subject to the regulations for businesses.
When getting an oil tank installed, you must choose someone who is registered with a ‘competent person’ scheme. This would usually be an OFTEC registered technician. A competent person can certify that their work complies with building regulations and can deal with building control issues, like objections.
If you don’t use someone registered with a competent person scheme, it gets more complicated, as you will have to get a Building Control Notice from your local council and arrange and pay for an inspection yourself.
The person installing your tank will do a risk assessment and will let you know if your tank needs to be bunded (have secondary containment). The bund must:
- Hold 110% of the tank’s capacity
- Be impermeable to oil and water
You will need a bund in the following situations:
- Where oil spills could run into an open drain or loose manhole cover
- Where the tank vent pipes aren’t visible when the tank is being filled eg because the delivery tanker is parked too far away
- Within 10 metres of coastal waters or inland fresh waters like lakes or streams
- Within 50 metres of a drinking water source, for example wells, boreholes or springs
- Where oil spills could run over hard ground and reach coastal waters, inland fresh waters or a drinking water source
- In the inner zone of groundwater source protection zone 1 (check Gov.uk if you are unsure what this means)
- If your tank can hold more than 2,500 litres of oil
There are very specific rules around the location of oil storage tanks and it’s important to take these rules into account if you are making any changes to your home or garden, such as an extension.
While a fire is highly unlikely to start inside a fuel storage tank, it is very important to protect the fuel in the tank from fires or heat sources nearby. To protect tanks from an ignition source, tanks should be sited:
- 1.8m away from non-fire rated eaves of a building
- 1.8m away from a non-fire rated building or structure (eg garden shed)
- 1.8m away from openings (such as doors or windows) in a fire rated building or structure (eg brick house/ garage)
- 1.8m away from liquid fuel appliance flue terminals
- 760mm away from a non-fire rated boundary eg a wooden fence
- 600mm away from screening (eg trellis and foliage) which isn’t part of the boundary
Your oil tank must have a sticker in a prominent position which tells you how to look after your oil and what to do if you have a spill. The competent person who installs your tank will put this on.
Storing oil at a place of business
At your business, you have to follow the business regulations if your container can hold more than 201 litres of oil. These business regulations also apply to public buildings like schools, hospitals and churches.
The regulations apply to storage of:
- Petrol
- Diesel
- Biofuels
- Kerosene
- Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO)
- Vegetable oil and plant-based oils eg sunflower oil or aromatherapy oil - including waste cooking oil
- Synthetic oils, for example motor oil - including waste oil
- Oils used as solvents
- Biodegradable oils, for example lubricating or hydraulic oils
- Liquid bitumen-based products eg waterproofing or damp proofing products or coatings for a road surface
You must follow different regulations if your oil is on a farm and you use it:
- For heat and power for agriculture eg to fuel a tractor – special agricultural rules apply and your OFTEC technician can advise on these
- To heat the farmhouse (this would follow the same domestic regulations as for any other home)
You should choose someone who’s registered with a ‘competent persons’ scheme – usually someone who is OFTEC registered - to install an oil tank on your business premises. They will be able to ensure that it is installed in a way which meets the regulations.
These are the regulations for England (from the Environment Agency). There are different building regulations in Wales (contact Natural Resources Wales), Scotland (Scottish Environment Protection Agency) and Northern Ireland (Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Northern Ireland).
It is important to understand and follow UK fuel and oil storage regulations at home and at work, to protect your property, the environment and your own finances. If you are unsure about the rules, speak to an OFTEC technician.
