Goudhurst Oil Group

If you use oil for heating and/or cooking and are not already members of the Goudhurst Oil Group and would like to join the syndicate, please click on this link and complete the form.  If you qualify, you can join the group and the Administrators will send you an email on when the next order cycle will take place.

If you are already a member – but want to tell your neighbours and friends how to sign-up – then please direct them to this page.

Our Briefing Note is copied below.

Keep warm!

Lorne Mitchell (Administrator)

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GOUDHURST OIL GROUP (GOG) – BRIEFING NOTE

Membership

Membership is open to residents of Goudhurst and Kilndown Parish and neighbouring villages with Postcodes TN17 and TN12 who use oil-fired boilers.
We are also linked with two other syndicates: Frittenden; and Wittersham and the Oxney Area.
Orders are coordinated to optimise volumes and prices; typical orders will exceed 200,000 litres.
Members are required to supply this data to join the Group:
Name
E-mail Address (one per household)
Postal Address, including Post Code
Telephone Number
Particular needs (e.g. multiple tanks, access/delivery issues, AGAs)
Special delivery details if required (e.g. access issues via security gate, location of tank(s))
If your name is not evident from the email address please always include it in any emails sent.

Group Goal and Approach

Our aim is to obtain competitive prices for members. Target is a discount on the market price the day the price is negotiated. We achieve this by giving the incentive to potential suppliers that they will have:
> orders of substantial volumes,
> from friendly customers,
> with payment guaranteed according to terms negotiated
We approach local suppliers, showing our order volume, and accept the lowest tender made.
That price is then fixed and Members will pay the selected supplier directly.
Oil is a volatile commodity and prices vary depending on the time of year, demand (including weather conditions), political stability, etc – we can make no guarantees about prices prior to our request for tender.

Ordering Process

Orders are placed three times yearly: in February, July and November.

Members receive an e-mail “Request for Orders” in January, June and October. This includes a link to a website where they complete some simple data fields and submit their requirements.

Qualifying new members are accepted up to one week prior to the “Request for Orders” deadline.

Notification Process

When the order has been placed, all Members receive an email “Order Placed “ and are given these details:

Supplier, price agreed, supplier contact name(s) and telephone number; and a request for any information to be given to supplier; payment requirements.

Members’ Commitment to Order and Contact with Suppliers and Administrators

Replies to the “Request for Orders” above represent a commitment to accept any quantities requested from the selected supplier and at the price agreed. Members are not able to have a change of mind after submitting their request.

Members are responsible to contact the supplier directly:
to supply promptly information requested in the “Notification of Order” – orders are subject to cancellation if this is not done
if they have concerns or special needs (e.g. multiple tanks, access/delivery issues, delivery dates, AGAs)

Please be courteous to those who supply and deliver the oil, as well as to the administrators ….it doesn’t always happen!

Payment

Members are responsible individually to pay for the quantities delivered, directly to the selected supplier, according to the terms negotiated. This will typically be by debit/credit card shortly after delivery (or possibly by prior contact with the supplier if you are unknown to them as a customer). Suppliers may make charge you for using credit cards.

Administration

Current Administrator:
Lorne Mitchell  = lorne(at)objectivedesigners(dot)com

The role of the Administrator(s) is to coordinate the Members’ Database and send the notices above. They also ensure the integrity of the system technically.

All communication is by e-mail.

If members have issues with suppliers please deal with them directly and do not expect the Administrator(s) to intervene except in extreme circumstances Administrators work entirely voluntarily and receive no additional benefits or price advantage.

In the last few years, our membership has more than doubled – to some 180 members currently with applications increasing; we readily accept all addresses within the TN17 and TN12 Post Codes.

While the number of members means higher volume orders and enables us to obtain lower prices, it also means more administrative support.

To facilitate the increased demands for the administration we are now using software for which we are paying licenses enabling us to automate much of the process; there is also some small programming work involved to support the system.

To fund the administration, an additional £0.003 pence per litre is added to the price quoted. For example, this adds £1.50 to orders of 500 litres; or £3.00 to orders of 1000 litres.

The oil company that wins each order is asked to add the £0.003 pence per litre to each customer’s bill and then refund it to finance the costs of running the Group.

The surplus is donated to The Friends of Saint Mary’s Church. The Friends support the preservation and evolution of the Church which is a focal point of the local environment and the Weald of Kent.