Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Energy suppliers must prioritise enquiries from vulnerable customers who need help under new rules announced by Ofgem. The requirements, which take effect from December, will require suppliers to contact customers if they miss two monthly or one quarterly payment, check to see if they are struggling with bills and, if so, offer support such as…
Read more
Household energy debt has hit a five-year high of £216 ahead of the winter, with the number of homes already owing money to their provider up 11% on last year new research from Uswitch.com, has revealed. The average household debt is up 13% on the £190 figure seen at this time last year, and the number…
Read more
Ofgem has announced that it has appointed five New Non-Executive Directors. Responsible for bringing independent oversight and support, the new Non-Executive Directors will help guide Ofgem’s work on current and future challenges – from restoring resilience in the energy market to maintaining progress towards the UK’s net zero goals. The 5 appointees, who take up their…
Read more
Fourteen energy retail companies have announced their collective commitment to go above and beyond current licensing conditions to help households struggling with energy bill debt this winter. The Winter 2023 Voluntary Debt Commitment, developed with Energy UK, Ofgem and Citizens Advice, means that energy suppliers are going further than existing regulatory obligations to provide better support…
Read more
Energy regulator, Ofgem has announced the launch of a consultation to assesss options to protect the energy market and consumers from the risk of spiralling debt. Figures obtained by the regulator this summer show that energy debt reached £2.6 billion, its highest ever level, due to a combination of the rise in wholesale energy prices,…
Read more
Water watchdog CCW has said it has seen a 29% rise in complaints made to it about water companies in the first quarter of the current year with poorest performers failing to get to grips with high levels of customer complaints. 232,817 complaints were made to water companies in England and Wales by households in…
Read more
Consultancy firm Cornwall Insight predicts that annual energy bills for a typical household are expected to rise by £73 to £1,996 in January. Under Ofgem’s energy price cap, the typical annual bill will be £1,923 between October and December, with this down from the £2,074 seen in the July through September quarter. Dr Craig Lowrey,…
Read more
EDF Energy has reported that the number of homes falling into debt on their energy bills has increased by 36% since the beginning of the year. The company also said standing charges on energy bills have increased by 55% since April 2021. The energy company has announced that it is boosting support for vulnerable customers…
Read more
Water companies will submit to Ofwat their plans for the next price review period from 2025-2030. The plans will be subject to scrutiny and challenge by Ofwat before final decisions are made in December 2024. Ofwat has told companies that they must be ambitious in their plans to reduce pollution, while delivering value for money for…
Read more
Latest data from, energy efficiency platform, Snugg has found that many people feel they are wasting money on energy bills because of their home’s poor energy efficiency. And while most would like to make their home more efficient, there is mass confusion over how and what help is available. The research found that 32% feel…
Read more
Introducing social tariffs has the potential to reduce the energy bills of the country’s most vulnerable by over £330 a year, at a relatively low cost to the government according to analysis from Cornwall Insight. The research says that the introduction of the October Default Tariff Cap (price cap), offering discounted deals to low-income households,…
Read more
MPs on the Commons Select Committee have warned that vulnerable households face an inevitable new winter crisi ” without more help on energy bills. A report from the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee follows a quick inquiry on how the Government and energy firms can best prepare for the coming months. MPs heard of…
Read more
Under-performance by the majority of water and wastewater companies in England and Wales, will mean companies have to return £114m to customers next year according to the water regulator Ofwat. The rebate has been set by Ofwat following its assessment of performance against targets set for 2022/23 and will come off customers’ bills for next…
Read more