Dusseldorf The dealer advertised with “many years of experience”, the prices seemed cheap. But customers who ordered firewood from the Schiltach online shop were in for a nasty surprise: the wood they ordered never arrived, but the money they had paid in advance was gone. The online shop is no longer online.
Timber dealers report increasing cases of fraudulent fake shops. They copy the websites of established dealers, often formulate a fictitious imprint and entice with cheap offers. The Federal Association of Firewood Trade warns: “We are repeatedly reported cases of fraud.”
The fact that the fraudsters have already discovered the firewood trade shows how dramatic the situation on the energy market is. Fear of rising gas prices and even a gas supply stop has made many consumers so insecure that they have also bought a wood-burning stove. But because of the great demand, firewood is now also in short supply.
One reason for the high demand is the threat of an export ban on Russian gas deliveries. This worries more and more Germans. According to the Federal Association of Energy and Water Industries, the average price of natural gas for a household has risen by almost 95 percent within a year.
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Firewood: Increasing demand in Germany
The North Rhine-Westphalia consumer advice center has been observing an increasing demand for firewood for a long time. But now the Ukraine war has exacerbated this situation again. The fact that Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck has now declared the gas emergency plan to be on alert has caused the market to tip over.
Timber dealers can hardly save themselves from customer inquiries. Marlon Mertz, Managing Director of Holz Harry, has observed that panic buying is so strong that there is a shortage of supply. “Robert Habeck is currently our best salesman,” he sees the connection to the current situation.
Wood prices: Firewood is cheaper than gas and heating oil
The timber merchant reports an unprecedented flood of orders. Everything is usually quiet around this time, but this year everything is different. Most of the inventories have already been sold to regular customers or abroad.
>> Read also: Is heating with wood worth it for homeowners now?
This also affects prices. It used to be possible to reduce costs by purchasing anti-cyclically. So you could always buy cheap wood in summer. But those times are over. “The usual summer prices are not available this year,” confirms Mertz.
As early as April, the industry association for house, heating and kitchen technology (HKI) spoke of a price increase of 30 percent compared to the previous year. “However, since one cubic meter of hardwood has the calorific value of around 200 liters of heating oil, firewood is still around 40 percent cheaper than gas and heating oil at the current price level,” calculates Frank Kienle, Managing Director of the HKI. Demand is increasing, however, and prices for beech wood are now expected to be around 120 euros.
Hamster purchases: “Firewood is the new toilet paper”
Johannes Schmitz from Kaminholz Schmitz GbR paints a similar picture. “We usually have two to three orders a week and now it’s 40 to 50 a day.” Nobody can produce the quantities demanded. As soon as a new delivery arrives, it is sold almost immediately.
Many customers only realize too late that they have to buy wood for their stove early on. That could take revenge. Schmitz expects the situation to worsen further in the coming weeks, “there will no longer be any wood on the open market”. Schmitz says jokingly: “Firewood is the new toilet paper.”
The Landesbetrieb Wald und Holz Nordrhein-Westfalen also expects prices to continue to rise. In particular, the infestation of pests such as the bark beetle have reduced production since 2018. Therefore, no replenishment is to be expected in the short term.
The NRW consumer advice center sees the situation a little less dramatically. The prices would certainly continue to rise in the coming weeks and months. But compared to the rising prices in the entire energy sector, the costs are still low, emphasize the consumer advocates. A complete sell-off is also not to be expected.
Where consumers can still get cheap wood
The availability also depends on the type of wood. According to the North Rhine-Westphalia State Office for Forests and Wood, there is a particularly high demand for hardwood. Softwood can still be used in sufficient quantities. But the retailers surveyed agree; the situation will become increasingly critical in the coming weeks.
When choosing the right dealer, consumers should compare carefully. Be careful with online shops. In general, the NRW police also warn of fake shops.
>> Read here: Insidious traps lurk in online trading – wHow to protect yourself from fake shops
The police observe that they are often almost indistinguishable from shops that actually exist. As indications by which one can recognize such false shops, she cites false seals of approval, remarkably low prices and less secure payment methods, which are increasingly found in such shops, for example the exclusive acceptance of advance payment. It is important to inquire, to call if in doubt and to look out for reviews on the Internet.
Firewood: Good deals are often available from the Forest Service and the local wood market
An alternative are local timber dealers or the forestry office. At the forestry offices, you get the cheapest offer at an average of 45 euros per cubic metre. In comparison, customers currently pay up to 180 euros at the hardware store. In most cases, however, knowledge of how to use a chainsaw and appropriate protective clothing are required.
At collection points along the way in many forests, people who collect them themselves can obtain the logs marked by the forestry office from so-called piles. This is not only the cheapest, but also the most sustainable due to the short distances.
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