Massachusetts Heating Oil Line Upgrade Requirements
By September 30, 2011, Oilheat homeowners may need to upgrade their home heating system equipment to prevent leaks from tanks and pipes that connect to your heating system. By making a relatively small expenditure now, you can prevent a much greater expense in the future.
In 2008, Massachusetts passed a law to help prevent oil leaks from home heating systems (Chapter 453 of the Acts of 2008). This law has two major provisions that require:
1. The installation of either an oil safety valve or an oil supply line with protective sleeve on systems that do not currently have these devices; AND
2. Insurance companies that write homeowner policies to make coverage available for possible leaks from heating systems that use oil.
Most homeowner policies do not currently include such coverage, leaving many to pay for cleanups out of their own pockets. Although it is mandatory that insurance companies offer this coverage, the insurance is an optional purchase for homeowners.
The effective date for the insurance provision is July 1, 2010.
If you do not have an oil safety valve or an oil supply line with a protective sleeve in place, you need to have one or the other installed and certified by September 30, 2011. You may contact our company to arrange for a licensed oil burner technician to perform this work.
You may also want to consider buying insurance coverage for the cleanup of a leak. Determine if your existing homeowner’s policy provides oil leak coverage. If it does not, please consider calling your insurance agent to amend the homeowner’s policy to include this coverage.