Watchdog Ofgem said it is planning to “reset and reform” the UK’s growing pile of energy debt, which has added pressure to all household bills.
Currently £52 is added to annual household energy bills under the current price cap via a debt allowance to cover energy debts that are never paid and have to be written off.
Ofgem said it expects to write off up to £500 million of historic debt built up during the recent energy crisis, in a move which could help around 195,000 people.
The regulator confirmed that a final consultation on the first phase of its debt relief scheme is set to be published shortly.
Figures published by Ofgem last month showed that the money owed to suppliers by households in England, Scotland and Wales…
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Watchdog Ofgem said it is planning to “reset and reform” the UK’s growing pile of energy debt, which has added pressure to all household bills.
Currently £52 is added to annual household energy bills under the current price cap via a debt allowance to cover energy debts that are never paid and have to be written off.
Ofgem said it expects to write off up to £500 million of historic debt built up during the recent energy crisis, in a move which could help around 195,000 people.
The regulator confirmed that a final consultation on the first phase of its debt relief scheme is set to be published shortly.
Figures published by Ofgem last month showed that the money owed to suppliers by households in England, Scotland and Wales…
Read the original article here
Watchdog Ofgem said it is planning to “reset and reform” the UK’s growing pile of energy debt, which has added pressure to all household bills.
Currently £52 is added to annual household energy bills under the current price cap via a debt allowance to cover energy debts that are never paid and have to be written off.
Ofgem said it expects to write off up to £500 million of historic debt built up during the recent energy crisis, in a move which could help around 195,000 people.
The regulator confirmed that a final consultation on the first phase of its debt relief scheme is set to be published shortly.
Figures published by Ofgem last month showed that the money owed to suppliers by households in England, Scotland and Wales…
Read the original article here
Watchdog Ofgem said it is planning to “reset and reform” the UK’s growing pile of energy debt, which has added pressure to all household bills.
Currently £52 is added to annual household energy bills under the current price cap via a debt allowance to cover energy debts that are never paid and have to be written off.
Ofgem said it expects to write off up to £500 million of historic debt built up during the recent energy crisis, in a move which could help around 195,000 people.
The regulator confirmed that a final consultation on the first phase of its debt relief scheme is set to be published shortly.
Figures published by Ofgem last month showed that the money owed to suppliers by households in England, Scotland and Wales…
Read the original article here
Britain’s energy regulator, Ofgem, has unveiled a strategic plan to tackle the alarming £4.4 billion in unpaid energy debts that are pushing millions of household bills to unsustainable levels.
As unrecovered debts add an extra £52 to current bills, Ofgem is preparing to roll out a £500 million debt relief scheme to alleviate the financial burden for approximately 195,000 consumers, though details on funding remain undisclosed.
Energy prices, still 50% higher than pre-Ukraine invasion levels, challenge both customers and the government, which is striving to lower costs while consumer advocacy groups call for expanded assistance to manage steep utility bills.
(With inputs from agencies.)
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Kevin PeacheyCost of living correspondent
Nearly 200,000 people on benefits could have their debts to their energy supplier cancelled, if they make some effort to pay what is owed.
Unpaid bills and fees have soared in recent years with energy prices so high, leaving a record £4.4bn owed to suppliers.
Up to £500m could be knocked off the total under plans that regulator Ofgem wants to take effect early next year.
But that will also require the cost to be covered through an extra £5 added to everyone’s gas and electricity bill. Households on a price cap tariff already typically pay £52 a year to deal with historic debt as part of the £1,755 annual bill.
Under the plans:
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On Wednesday, a committee of MPs said this debt should be cleared using energy network companies “excess” profits.
In a report, the Energy Security and Net Zero (ESNZ) Committee called it “completely inexcusable” that households were forced to choose between eating and heating while companies behind Britain’s gas pipes and power lines amassed huge profits. It said these profits should fund a debt relief scheme.
Those windfall profits were partly the result of high inflation, but Ofgem said that renegotiating price controls would bring extra costs to consumers that would outweigh the benefits.
Charlotte Friel, from Ofgem, said the growing amount of energy debt was a “significant challenge” for those in debt as well as for households that…
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The energy regulator, Ofgem, has unveiled a new relief scheme poised to write off as much as £500 million in household energy bill debt.
The watchdog stated its intention to “reset and reform” the nation’s escalating energy debt, a burden that has contributed to increased pressure on domestic finances.
Under the existing price cap, an allowance of £52 is presently incorporated into annual household energy bills, designed to cover unpaid energy debts that ultimately require writing off.
This initiative is expected to address up to £500 million of historic debt…
Read the original article here
Up to half a billion pounds of household energy bill debt is set to be written off as part of a new relief scheme, the energy regulator has announced.
Ofgem, the energy watchdog, plans to “reset and reform” the UK’s escalating energy debt, a burden currently adding pressure to all household bills.
Under the existing price cap, an annual charge of £52 is levied on household energy bills as a debt allowance, designed to cover unpaid energy debts that are ultimately written off.
The regulator anticipates writing off up to £500 million in historic debt, accumulated during…
Read the original article here
Read the original article here
Up to £500 million worth of energy debt could soon be written off thanks to a new Debt Relief Scheme proposed by Ofgem, as the regulator attempts to bring down £4.4 billion of debt in the energy system.
If implemented, Ofgem says the scheme could help around 195,000 customers deal with historical debt built up during the 2022 energy crisis and its aftermath.
