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Ofgem’s retail team is considering the option of banning energy suppliers from moving vulnerable customers onto prepayment meters (PPM), an executive at the regulator has told Utility Week.
Maureen Paul, deputy director of retail market policy at Ofgem, said she was conscious of the calls from consumer bodies such as Citizens Advice and the concerns directly related to the regulator by customers.
Paul was speaking on a follow-up webinar to Utility Week’s Consumer Vulnerability and Debt Conference.
At the original event in Birmingham, Thomas Brooke Bullard, senior policy researcher at Citizens Advice, said “lives are going to be at risk” if the issue of forced installation of PPMs is not addressed ahead of this winter.
Asked about this on the webinar on Thursday (13 October), Paul said: “That’s one option that has been presented to us in supporting customers on PPMs. And I can say this is something my team is currently looking at as an option.
“We have definitely heard that call from the consumer bodies but also speaking direct to customers. We understand from them the sort of issues they’re facing. Some of these are customers with health issues. This is definitely high on my agenda in terms of looking more at what we can do in that space.”
A report by Citizens Advice at the end of September warned 225,000 people could be forced onto PPMs this winter.
At the time Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “Energy companies have a duty to protect customers, but forcibly moving people in debt onto prepayment meters is disconnection by the backdoor.”
Water companies could be fined for poor customer performance
Emily Bulman, Ofwat’s director of charges and customer policy, also spoke on the webinar, updating on what the regulator is doing to help vulnerable customers this winter.
She discussed progress on the plans to develop a customer-focused licence condition in this financial year, aimed at holding companies to account on the service and experience they deliver for customers.
She explained: “We want to have a regulatory base within the licence for customer service and support.
“We launched this in a workshop in June. We know other sectors have done work in this area and we were very pleased to have Ofgem and FCA contributing to those workshops.
“We are doing more workshops and deep dives on the principles we want in the licence and then the more detailed guidance that underpins that.
“The sort of principles we’re talking about are around customer communication and engagement, around the full diversity of customer needs, including those in vulnerable circumstances and those who are struggling to pay. It’s also about providing support to put things right when they have gone wrong.”
Asked how the policy would differ from current guidance and industry-wide initiatives to improve customer service, Bulman said: “It’s part of a portfolio of tools but the licence condition is wider in scope so it’s not just about financial vulnerability. The particular aspect of having a licence condition is that we can take enforcement action and issue company fines.”
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