LITCHFIEL D, N.H. -- If you locked in your heating oil price earlier this year, you may find it hard to watch the falling prices. While most oil companies are holding people to those higher prices, at least is giving back.

 

Some homeowners locked in heating oil at more than $4 per gallon while prices seemed to be going nowhere but up. Now, it's below the $3 mark.

 

Fred Fuller Oil is offering a program to help those who locked in with higher prices. One major customer that could benefit is the Litchfield School District, which needs 44,000 gallons of oil to heat its schools.

 

"We had locked in at $3.99 a gallon, and they came back and said they were offering current price plus 50 cents," said Steve Martin, business administrator for the district.

 

Before Fuller made the offer, the district expected its energy costs to be $78,000 over budget. Now, it expects to save some money.

 

"If the prices hold, we'll save about $22,000 a year," Martin said.

 

Homeowners have also gotten a deal.

 

"We're allowing them to get downside protection with the falling prices," said William Fuller, general manager of Fred Fuller Oil.

 

For consumers who locked in, they would pay an additional 30 cents for each gallon left on the contract. So, a homeowner with 500 gallons of pre-bought oil left would pay $150 on top of what was already paid.

 

 

But, going forward, the homeowner would pay the current market price the day the oil barrel gets filled. On Monday, that would be $2.49, compared to a lock-in price for some of $4.

 

The difference -- in this example, about $600 after the fee -- gets credited to the homeowner's account for use the following year.

 

Getting out of the lock-in contract does come with a risk. If something happens in the world market, the price could skyrocket again, and then, homeowners could lose with the new offer.

 

Other oil companies said that although they are still holding people to their contracts, they are talking to their suppliers to see if they can do anything to help customers.

Copyright 2008 by WMUR. All rights reserved.