Energy firms given Tuesday deadline for prepayment meter action

Energy companies person until Tuesday to determine what enactment they volition instrumentality for customers who whitethorn person had prepayment meters wrongfully installed.

Business Secretary Grant Shapps said vigor suppliers request to refocus their efforts connected the consumers "at the extremity of this abhorrent behaviour".

It follows a bid of reports astir the forced installation of prepayment meters successful people's homes.

Regulator Ofgem said it shares Mr Shapp's daze astatine the revelations.

BBC News has learned that magistrates courts successful England and Wales were advised to o.k. bulk applications by vigor companies allowing them to forcibly instal prepayment meters into people's homes.

According to a leaked document, magistrates were told that it was "irrational" to garbage specified warrants and that rules requiring them to question the applications were "disproportionate".

While The Times recovered indebtedness agents for British Gas had breached into susceptible people's homes to acceptable meters.

In the aftermath of the revelations, Mr Shapps has told Ofgem to toughen up connected suppliers, accusing the regulator of excessively easy "having the wool pulled implicit their eyes" and taking what vigor companies are telling them astatine look value.

"They request to besides perceive to customers to marque definite this attraction of susceptible consumers doesn't hap again," helium said.

Ofgem said vigor firms are legally required to taxable "an honorable practice of the facts" and the regulator "required assessments to beryllium signed disconnected by their boards".

It said it would beryllium an "extremely superior substance for immoderate licensee to supply misleading oregon purposefully inaccurate information".

Further reviews would beryllium carried retired to "cross analyse what we person had reported to america with nonstop reports from customers and wider stakeholders, and perchance those progressive successful transportation of services."

Labour shadiness concern caput Ed Miliband said Mr Shapps "sat connected his hands" and failed to instrumentality enactment implicit the issue.

"Grant Shapps is the do-nothing concern secretary, who has sat connected his hands successful the look of the ungraded of forced installation of prepayment meters, and simultaneously waves done vigor companies making grounds profits astatine the disbursal of the British people," helium said.

"Now, adjacent aft the ungraded astatine British Gas and the millions disconnected by the backmost door, helium inactive won't follow Labour's telephone for a full and ongoing prohibition connected the forced installation of prepayment meters until determination is wholesale betterment of a discredited, rotten and callous system. "

There are much than 4 cardinal UK households connected prepayment meters.

The probe by the Times revealed however indebtedness agents moving for Arvato Financial Solutions connected behalf of British Gas forced their mode into the location of a azygous father-of-three to instal a prepayment meter.

British Gas - which is the country's largest supplier with 7.26 cardinal customers - suspended forcefully installing prepayment meters until astatine slightest aft the winter. In effect to The Times' findings, Chris O'Shea, the brag of Centrica which owns British Gas, told the BBC: "There is thing that I tin accidental that tin explicit the fearfulness I had erstwhile I heard this, erstwhile I work this. It is wholly unacceptable.

"The contractor that we've employed, Arvato, has fto america down but I americium accountable for this."

EDF, Britain's 2nd largest supplier, besides suspended the forced installation of prepayment meters and is reviewing its practices.

Ovo Energy said it suspended its warrant activities successful November, and Octopus Energy said it was "not installing immoderate astatine the moment" and seldom had done.