Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
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,…
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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…
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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…
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Ofgem has announced that energy suppliers have been banned from forcibly installing prepayment meters for people over 75 with no support in their house and homes with children aged under 2, The energy regulator has confirmed that the Code of Practice for the involuntary installation of prepayment meters (PPMs) will be made mandatory. It has…
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Worries about housing costs have hit the highest levels ever recorded by Which?’s Consumer Insight Tracker, as interest rates are widely expected to rise further. The Insight Tracker recorded highest levels of concern around housing costs – with four in five mortgage owners (79%) and 4 in 5 renters (81%) saying that they were worried…
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Ovo Energy is calling on the government to remove standing charges for the most vulnerable customers this winter and has confirmed it will be retaining the current standing charge level after the 1st October as the price cap comes into effect. The company has also renewed its calls on the government to introduce a social…
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Mark McAllister has been named as the government’s preferred candidate to be the next Chair of energy regulator, Ofgem. An engineer by profession, McAllister has served as Chair of the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) since April 2019, where he is charged with ensuring the ONR delivers efficient and effective regulation of the nuclear industry. His selection…
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The Consumer Council for Water (CCW) has announced that Mike Keil will become Interim Chief Executive from next month. Keil, who is currently the consumer body’s Senior Director for Policy, Research and Campaigns – will step into the shoes of departing CEO Emma Clancy from 2nd October. Keil joined CCW in May 2017 as its…
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Octopus Energy has announced it will buy Shell’s household energy business in the UK and Germany. Octopus has signed a deal with Impello, a subsidiary of Shell Petroleum Company to buy Shell Energy, taking on two million new home energy and broadband customers. This deal grows challenger energy supplier Octopus to nearly 6.5 million household…
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The Ofgem energy price cap will fall to £1,923 from October for a typical household, but over one-in-three households across England – 7.2 million in total – will face higher bills this winter than last, highlighting the urgency of further government support for hard-pressed families according to the Resolution Foundation. The Foundation notes that the…
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Latest research by Citizens Advice has found that 7.8 million people borrowed to pay their energy bills in first six months of 2023. A total of 46,431 people with energy debts contacted the charity for advice in the first six months of 2023, a 17% increase on the same period last year. Citizens Advice says…
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Ofgem has announced that its energy price cap will drop to £1,923 from 1st October 2023, a decrease of 7 per cent compared to April’s level but £646 higher than two years ago. The drop reflects further falls in wholesale energy prices, as the market stabilises and suppliers return to a healthier financial position after…
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Over one-in-three (35 per cent) English households, equivalent to 7.2 million households, will see higher energy bills this winter than they did last winter, including almost half (47 per cent) of those in the poorest tenth of households, according to new Resolution Foundation research. Ofgem is expected to announce a reduction in the energy price…
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