“If I had just ordered it when it was at £300 things would be a lot simpler, a lot easier,” she said.
“We just don’t have that money lying around.”
Heating oil is often used in homes across the UK and Ireland that are not connected to the gas grid.
Shepherd said the cost of oil was normally between £600 and £700 for 1,000 litres, but it had jumped to £1,258 as of last week, with prices expected to continue rising.
“It’s a big worry because we then have to cut back on certain things like family days out with the children,” she said.
The UK and Ireland Fuel Distributors Association (UKIFDA) said there had been a “rapid rise in wholesale prices, which, in turn, has increased the price distributors pay for heating oil and, consequently, raised prices for customers”.
Delivery times had also been affected by higher-than-usual demand, it added.
The organisation said: “The situation in the Middle East is changing quickly, making it difficult to predict how prices will move in the coming weeks.
“If your tank is running low, the best approach is to order as normal.”
In the village of Alne, near York, Bob Hayes runs a cooperative which makes group purchases of heating oil at wholesale price, which helps keep costs lower due to bulk buying and fewer deliveries.