Do Not Try to Stay in Your Home After an Oil Spill – It’s Not Safe!
Yes, an oil leak in your house is dangerous. Heating oil fumes contain benzene and other carcinogens that can cause breathing problems, headaches, and long-term health risks with prolonged exposure. If you smell oil or find a spill in your home, leave the area, ventilate if it’s safe to do so, and contact your local environmental agency right away. Do not stay in the home until professional remediation is complete.
Whenever we talk to clients about these subjects, one of the items we frequently discuss is actually leaving your home or business after an oil spill. We fully understand how difficult it can be to leave home. Clients express how difficult it can be to uproot their lives and live with a friend, family member, neighbor, or in a hotel/motel – but it’s the right choice for your health (along with the health of your family and/or customers).
Oil Spills Expose You to High Levels of Carcinogens
Staying in your home or business may seem like a convenient choice, but you are putting yourself and others at risk due to the continued exposure to toxins from the spill. Oil is full of toxic chemicals like benzene, which is a known carcinogen.
The United Nations indicated that prolonged exposure to petroleum, which is used in some home heating systems, increases the risk of cancer. While the study was done on people living near plants, occupying a building that has directly been exposed to a spill could include similar risks of mesothelioma, skin cancer, lung cancer, and other types of cancer.
People who have stayed behind after an oil spill have reported experiencing difficulty breathing due to inhaling these fumes. Until total remediation has been done, your home will not be a totally safe place to live.
Health Effects of an Oil Leak in Your House
A home heating oil spill doesn’t just damage floors and walls — it affects the air you breathe. The severity depends on how much oil leaked, how long it’s been sitting, and how well ventilated the space is. Reported effects of inhaling heating oil fumes include:
- Headaches and dizziness from breathing in vapors, especially in enclosed basements
- Irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat
- Coughing and difficulty breathing, which can be worse for people with asthma or other respiratory conditions
- Nausea after extended exposure
- Skin irritation from direct contact with spilled oil
- Long-term risks, including elevated cancer risk from repeated or prolonged exposure to benzene and other hydrocarbons in heating oil
Children, older adults, and anyone with pre-existing respiratory or heart conditions are typically more sensitive to these effects and should be evacuated first.
Signs You Have Oil Fumes in the House
Not every oil leak is obvious right away. Some common warning signs include:
- A strong, persistent gasoline- or kerosene-like smell, especially near a basement, boiler room, or heating oil tank
- An oily sheen or dark stain on flooring, walls, or soil near the tank
- Headaches or nausea that improve when you leave the house and return when you’re back inside
- A noticeable drop in fuel level in your tank without a corresponding delivery
If you notice any of these signs, treat it as an active oil leak in the house, not just an unpleasant smell — and follow the safety steps below.
What Should I Do, and Where Should I Go?
When exposed to an oil spill, contact law enforcement or a local environmental agency immediately. After that, let them do their jobs while you avoid any direct contact with the oil, stay away from areas exposed to the oil (you will often be able to smell or see it), do not drink, bathe, or enter waters near the spill, and get out.
You may be able to find a loved one to stay with, but you also should not be afraid to seek out housing at a hotel or motel if you can afford it in the interim.
For a full walkthrough of the first steps to take in the moment — from shutting off the source safely to documenting the damage — see our post on what to do right away if you spot an oil spill in NY.
What to Do If You Find Oil in Your Backyard
Home heating oil spills aren’t limited to basements — leaking underground tanks and delivery mishaps can leave oil pooling in your yard or seeping into the soil. If you find oil in your backyard:
- Keep people and pets away from the affected area.
- Avoid walking through the oil or tracking it into your home.
- Note how large the spill is and whether it’s moving toward a storm drain, well, or neighboring property.
- Report it to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) or your local health department.
- Take photos and videos before any cleanup begins.
Oil in soil can migrate toward groundwater over time, which is why prompt reporting matters even if the spill looks small. Our guide on the risks of oil tank spills breaks down how contamination spreads and what it can mean for your property.
How to Get Rid of Fuel Oil Smell in the House?
Once the leak has stopped and any remaining oil has been removed by professionals, lingering odor is common — oil can soak into wood, drywall, insulation, and concrete. General steps homeowners can take once it’s safe to be back in the space include:
- Ventilate thoroughly. Open windows and run fans to move fresh air through the affected area for several days.
- Have contaminated materials professionally assessed. Porous materials like carpet, drywall, and insulation that absorbed oil often need to be removed rather than deodorized.
- Use activated charcoal or an air purifier with a carbon filter in the room to help absorb residual odor.
- Have your HVAC system inspected and cleaned if the system may have circulated fumes through the house.
- Avoid masking the smell with air fresheners — this doesn’t address the underlying contamination and can delay you noticing if the leak reoccurs.
If the odor persists after cleanup, that’s often a sign remediation wasn’t complete, and it’s worth having a licensed environmental remediation company re-inspect the property.
How Will I Afford Alternative Housing?
As noted in our previous post on the rights of New Yorkers exposed to oil spills, you have the right under New York’s Navigation Law to recover any reasonable costs associated with the oil spill as long as you weren’t responsible. If you are forced to pay for alternative housing then the discharger of the oil will be required to reimburse you for those costs at a reasonable rate. Reasonable just means any costs associated with the necessary housing.
Our team at Sunshine, Isaacson & Hecht knows environmental law in New York. Attorney Jeffrey Sunshine serves as the Chair of the Environmental Law Committee of the Nassau County Bar Association. Our expertise guides us to serve and protect New Yorkers in the event of an oil spill. Contact us, and we will help you take the necessary steps to protect yourself and your family while we fight for every penny you are owed.
Talk to an Attorney Who Knows New York Oil Spill Law
Our team at Sunshine, Isaacson & Hecht knows environmental law in New York. Attorney Jeffrey Sunshine serves as the Chair of the Environmental Law Committee of the Nassau County Bar Association. Our expertise guides us to serve and protect New Yorkers in the event of an oil spill.
If an oil leak has forced you out of your home, our oil spill lawyers can help you understand your rights and pursue reimbursement for cleanup, remediation, and alternative housing costs. Contact us, and we will help you take the necessary steps to protect yourself and your family while we fight for every penny you are owed.
FAQ
Is an oil smell in the house dangerous?
Yes. A persistent oil smell usually means fumes containing benzene and other hydrocarbons are present in the air, which can cause headaches, respiratory irritation, and long-term health risks with continued exposure.
Is it dangerous to stay in a home with an oil leak?
Yes. Until the source is stopped and the property is professionally remediated, occupying the home puts you at risk of inhaling toxic fumes and coming into direct contact with the oil.
How long does it take for oil smell to go away after a spill?
It depends on how much oil leaked and what materials absorbed it. Surface spills may clear up within days of proper ventilation and cleanup, while oil that soaked into flooring, walls, or insulation can produce odor for weeks until those materials are professionally remediated or removed.
Who Is Responsible for Paying the Cost of Cleaning Up an Oil Spill in My Home?
Under New York’s Navigation Law, the party responsible for the spill — often the heating oil delivery company — is generally required to pay for cleanup and related costs, including temporary housing, even without proving negligence.
Are There Deadlines for Filing Claims Under the Navigation Law?
Common symptoms include headaches, dizziness, nausea, coughing, and irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat. People with asthma or other respiratory conditions may notice wheezing or shortness of breath even with brief exposure. Symptoms that improve when you leave the house and return when you’re back inside are a strong sign the fumes are the cause.
Can an oil leak in the house make you sick?
Yes, prolonged or repeated exposure to heating oil fumes has been linked to elevated risk of chronic respiratory issues and certain cancers, since heating oil contains benzene and other carcinogenic hydrocarbons. This is why professional remediation, not just airing out the room, matters after a leak.
Is it safe to clean up a small oil spill myself?
Only very minor surface spills should be handled without professionals, and even then, gloves, proper ventilation, and absorbent material like kitty litter are a must. Larger spills, anything affecting a basement or living space, or spills you can smell throughout the house should be left to a licensed environmental remediation company.
What should I do immediately if I find an oil spill at my house?
Get everyone out of the affected area, avoid contact with the oil, open windows if it’s safe to do so, and shut off the source if you can do it without risk. Then contact your heating oil company and the DEC or local health department right away, and document the spill with photos before cleanup begins.
