With the publication of today’s Sustainability First report, Consumer Focus is urging the Government not to miss the once in a lifetime opportunity to help millions of prepayment meter customers which the roll-out of smart meters offers.
Including a pre-payment meter facility in all smart meters could remove a large part of the additional costs imposed on pre-pay customers and would be an easy and cheap1 way to permanently lower costs for many of the poorest energy customers. The consumer champion argues that as pre-payment customers still pay around £90 on average more than direct debit customers, and are much more likely to be in fuel poverty, this move must be made, subject to appropriate safety checks.
Zoe McLeod, energy expert at Consumer Focus said:
‘The Government must not miss this once in a lifetime opportunity to revolutionise the pay as you go energy market, drive down prepayment meter costs and increase convenience and choice for all consumers.
‘Introducing smart gas prepay meters as well as electricity could result in significant savings for millions of consumers, many of whom are on low incomes. This relatively small one-off cost could finally help put an end to the situation where many poor customers are forced to pay more.’
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Notes to Editors
- The cost for including a pre-pay facility is estimated at up to £13 for all UK energy customers.
