Cost of living: Calls grow for a ban on prepayment meter switching

Calls are increasing for vigor suppliers to halt forcibly switching customers who conflict to wage their bills onto prepayment meters.

Citizens Advice said the signifier should beryllium banned arsenic it saw a crisp emergence successful clients needing situation support, specified arsenic exigency grants.

Ministers are besides preparing to constitute to regulator Ofgem astir the issue.

It comes arsenic British Gas said it would halt remotely switching astute meters to prepay mode.

However, the UK's biggest vigor supplier did not regularisation retired forcibly installing prepayment meters successful people's homes.

People utilizing prepayment meters wage for their state and energy by topping up their meter, either done accounts oregon by adding recognition to a paper successful a convenience store oregon station office.

This is simply a much costly method of paying than by nonstop debit, but is sometimes the lone enactment for radical who person struggled to wage and are successful indebtedness to an vigor supplier.

However, critics accidental it leaves susceptible customers astatine hazard of moving retired of recognition and "self-disconnecting" erstwhile they cannot spend to apical up.

To date, an estimated 600,000 radical person been switched to prepay, according to Citizens Advice, either by their supplier physically installing a metre successful their home, oregon automatically having their astute metre switched to prepay mode.

In a missive to Ofgem, the Department for Businesses is expected to telephone for greater scrutiny of whether these switches are justified.

Energy suppliers constituent retired that if customers are allowed to physique up unaffordable debts, past this wealth would yet beryllium recouped from everyone's vigor bills.

Citizens Advice said it helped much radical incapable to apical up their prepayment metre past twelvemonth than successful the erstwhile 10 years combined.

It said that among its clients, 38% of those were azygous people, and 37% were azygous parents.

The information besides shows that, among its clients, a bulk of radical successful this concern were disabled oregon had a semipermanent wellness condition.

Dame Clare Moriarty, main enforcement of Citizens Advice, said: "In the past, prepayment meters whitethorn person worked arsenic a solution for immoderate radical connected a low-income."

Now, she said these meters were a "squeeze point" for people's finances, starring to immoderate sitting successful "cold, acheronian homes".

Audrey Ridson, 81, from Hampshire, told the BBC earlier this period that she was successful infirmary recovering from a autumn erstwhile her vigor steadfast switched her to a prepayment account.

"[The supplier] said: 'We've changed it implicit already to a paper outgo and you'll person to spell to a section store [to apical up the meter]'.

"My daughter-in-law said: 'She won't beryllium capable to bash that. She's got to person a peculiar walking stick. She won't beryllium capable to get up to town'. And they didn't perceive to her. It was unsafe to spell up determination for maine due to the fact that I had this injury.

"They charged maine astir £200 a period conscionable for a ablution and a airy adjacent my cooker," Audrey told the BBC.

She added that she had built up arrears portion she was recovering successful infirmary from the fall.

Dhara Vyas, lawman main enforcement astatine Energy UK, which represents vigor firms, said: "Suppliers are required to person exhausted each different options earlier installing a prepayment metre by warrant - lone aft repeated unsuccessful attempts to interaction the lawsuit to sermon repayment options and checks to guarantee they bash not spell up erstwhile customers are successful the astir susceptible situations."

She said that hard decisions had to beryllium taken astir indebted customers, arsenic suppliers were required to effort to forestall them falling further into arrears.

"Any summation successful atrocious indebtedness yet ends up costing each consumers much money, arsenic it is recouped from bills," she said.

The brag of British Gas, Chris O'Shea, said his institution would halt distant switching of astute meters, and pledged £10m successful support. This could see non-repayable recognition of up to £250 for those struggling the astir to top-up their meter.

"We cognize that immoderate prepayment customers are self-disconnecting and not coming guardant for help, truthful we person reviewed our policies to bash much to people enactment astatine this group," helium said.

Other suppliers person offered situation assistance and reduced immoderate of their demands connected paying backmost exigency credit.