Young energy consumers continue to suffer most under Covid

Young energy consumers in Britain continue to be the group most heavily impacted by Covid-19, a new Ofgem report has shown.

Since the start of the pandemic the energy regulator has conducted polling of thousands of consumers to gauge how they have been affected.

The latest, which surveyed 2,000 adults aged 16-75 in March this year, found around one-in-twenty consumers with a credit meter have made changes to their bill payment arrangements.

However, it said, consumers aged under 35 were more likely to have been affected by social distancing measures, especially those in the 16-24 age group.

Nearly three times as many had fallen into arrears on their energy bills (20 per cent) compared to the average of seven per cent. Meanwhile 16 per cent had reduced the amount of their direct debit, compared to just five per cent for the rest of GB.

Elsewhere, the survey looked into the experiences of consumers in topping up their pre-payment meters (PPM). It found more of the 16-34 group experienced issues than those who are older.

For example nearly a third (32 per cent) have used emergency credit compared to 24 per cent among those aged 35 plus.

Twice as many reduced the amount of energy used (19 per cent) compared to consumers aged 35 or over (nine per cent). One-in-seven (14 per cent) asked their supplier for additional emergency credit (compared to two per cent of those aged 35 or over).

Additionally more have been temporarily disconnected (14 per cent vs 7 per cent).

Social distancing was found to be a factor impacting young people as more were unable to top-up because they could not get transport (14 per cent) compared to those over 35 (three per cent) or because their usual top up shop was closed (14 per cent vs three per cent).

Overall however, significantly fewer PPM customers drew on emergency credit (27 per cent) compared to October (35 per cent). However, 14 per cent of PPM customers reduced the amount of energy they used while 13 per cent reduced the amount they put on the meter.

Meanwhile, those aged 16-34 with a credit meter were twice as likely to be worried they might fall behind on energy bills due to a drop in income (42 per cent) compared to the GB average of 21 per cent.

This concern has significantly increased among this age group compared with October 2020.

Similarly, nearly twice as many were concerned about their energy supply (40 per cent) compared to the GB average (22 per cent).

Similar numbers of people (12 per cent) said they had fallen behind on household bills to October (13 per cent). Three times as many of those aged 16-34 had fallen behind compared to older consumers (24 per cent vs eight per cent).

Usage

Around three in five (58 per cent) of all consumers in March perceived their energy use to be higher than normal for the time of year. However conversely, 14 per cent reduced the amount of energy they used – significantly more than in May 2020.

Among the consumers most likely to have reduced their consumption were young people aged 16-24 (28 per cent), in line with those who have fallen behind on household bills and those who worried they would suffer from a loss of income.

Responding to the research Matt Copeland, head of policy and public affairs at fuel poverty charity National Energy Action, said: “During the pandemic, households have seen reduced incomes coupled with increased energy costs due to the need to spend more time at home.

“Ofgem’s polling clearly shows that this has had a significant impact on younger people, who are often in work, and not in receipt of means tested income support, making them hard to identify for support with their energy bills.

“It is important that utilities, regulators, and consumer groups come together to design mechanisms to identify struggling households so that support can be guaranteed for all who need it, not a lottery.”