Deferral of new social reporting questions ‘could create blind spot’

Fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA) has raised concerns following Ofgem’s decision to defer the introduction of new questions and categories regarding social obligations reporting by a year.

Licence conditions stipulate that suppliers must submit data to the regulator quarterly and annually on a variety of areas, including debt levels, disconnection rates, prepayment meters, smart meters, payment methods used by customers and help for the vulnerable. This is known as social obligations reporting.

Earlier this week Ofgem announced it was proposing to defer the introduction of new and amended questions for social obligations reporting until 2022, with the first reporting under the revised guidance due in April of that year.

The changes, which were initially due in January 2021, would have had four main impacts:

• Adjustment of the categories of data collected in relation to debt
• Additional questions in relation to self-disconnection
• Removal of a number of questions and reduction of the number of indicators collected quarterly
• Increase in the number of indicators collected for England, Scotland and Wales

The regulator said it was making the proposal primarily to reduce the burden on suppliers in light of the additional demands already placed on them due to the pandemic. It further acknowledged that suppliers are currently providing some of the detail that would have been required in relation to self-disconnection through their reporting on its request for information in relation to Covid-19.

In addition Ofgem is proposing that suppliers who wish to would be permitted to submit a nil/zero return for any of the questions which it had planned to remove, or where it had asked for submissions with reduced frequency, from Q1 2021.

Ofgem stressed its commitment to the collection and use of the data adding that suppliers who choose to provide information under the new guidelines earlier than April 2022 can do so.

However following the announcement Matt Copeland, policy manager at NEA, said the organisation had concerns over the deferral.

Specifically the charity worries that policy decisions which could be needed might end up being delayed without the data from this winter and that the industry may be blind to issues as they take their toll over the coming months.

Copeland said: “The impact of the pandemic and lockdowns on the affordability of energy has been clear, and it has been shown that this manifests itself in increased utility debt and more self-disconnections.

“It has never been more important to have good data on these issues, so that the right policy decisions can be made at the right time to support the households most in need. It is therefore worrying to see that Ofgem propose to defer the reporting of such valuable data until January 2022, which could create a blind spot for these issues this winter.”

Suppliers have until 11 December to submit their thoughts in response to the consultation and a decision is expected soon after.