Households who rely on heating oil are having to wait longer for deliveries as people rush to top up their tanks.

Broadland Fuels, in Martham, said its six drivers were working overtime in a bid to meet demand.

Phil Woodgreaves said customers worried about supply issues and rising costs in the wake of the petrol crisis had lead to a surge in orders.

Much of the demand was fuelled by people who already had enough in their tanks but were topping up in a bid to head off any supply issues or price hikes.

The wait for deliveries comes after this paper launched its There With You This Winter campaign to help people struggling to pay their fuel bills.

Mr Woodgreaves said he would advise anyone to continue ordering their normal amount because there was enough to round and a full team of drivers to deliver it.

The only problem at the moment was people having to wait longer for their fuel because they were so busy.

Anyone ordering today (October 11) would likely have to wait at least two weeks and probably until the end of the week beginning October 25.

"We are quite often going to people's houses and not getting the full quota in because people are looking to top up," he said. "And that has pushed our deliveries back.

"At this time of year it does start to get a bit chilly and people think about putting their heating on but we are seeing even more of an increase and we would advise people to continue doing what they normally do.

"We have a full squad of drivers, the only issue we have is length of delivery."

Meanwhile, Community Action Norfolk, issued a statement via its newsletter about its Thinking Fuel collective buying scheme.

It said: "The panic buying witnessed at petrol stations across the UK, which has caused major delivery problems, is also affecting heating oil, with unprecedented demand and supply issues arising."

Orders were being taken on a daily basis instead of fortnightly, it said, with delivery likely to extend to 15 or more working days.

It advised people to only order what they needed, adding: "There is fuel available, the problems are related to distribution issues and high demand."