So Energy founder: Consumers face a second winter of crisis

Energy customers will face a “second winter of crisis” without further government support, an industry chief has told Utility Week.

Simon Oscroft, co-founder of So Energy, was speaking following chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s Budget which was unveiled on Wednesday (15 March).

While Oscroft welcomed the news the government was extending the £2,500 Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) by a further three months, describing it as “absolutely the right thing to do”, he raised concerns about the impact of ending the Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS).

“The issue we have is those that are more vulnerable, and those households that can least afford to pay…as we come into winter, we’re going to face a second winter of crisis if energy bills are still above £2,000 a year, and without any EBSS support, then customers are going to be in a worse position than they were last winter,” Oscroft told Utility Week.

He warned that many consumers will be at “breaking point” and called for more targeted support.

“The solution is more support, but more targeted. The EBSS scheme was good, the EPG has helped all households, but therein potentially is one of the challenges of the measures, that they help all households,” he said.

So Energy recently contributed to a major report by the Social Market Foundation and Public First, commissioned by Citizens Advice, which called on the government to introduce a social energy tariff by April next year.

The company proposes matching household income data from HMRC with usage data from suppliers to create a reliable metric of fuel poverty.

Oscroft added that support should be focused and the government should look at data matching and the better targeting of measures.

“These are things that need to start happening today to mean that we can target the measures better for those that need them the most,” he added.

Elsewhere in the sector, Ovo Energy boss Raman Bhatia also stressed the need for a social tariff.

He said: “Households have endured one of the worst economic shocks in a generation so the extension of the Energy Price Guarantee will go a long way to soften the impact. Standing charges and the prepayment meter poverty penalty were fundamental flaws in our energy system that needed to be put right.

“We welcome the chancellor’s action on this but urge him to go further and work with the industry to design a social tariff. We also need a bolder ambition to transition to a zero carbon energy system so we can avoid an energy crisis like this in the future.”