Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that energy suppliers have policies and procedures to identify vulnerable customers.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government has every confidence in Ofgem as the independent regulator of the energy market in Great Britain. Having completed a review of how suppliers support customers in vulnerable situations, Ofgem is working with seven suppliers found to have minor weaknesses in their processes. The ten suppliers found to have moderate to severe weaknesses are required to implement rapid and robust improvements to their processes. Failure to act fast enough may result in Ofgem taking enforcement action. More details are available at:
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November to Question 79319 on Fireworks: Regulation; if he will make an estimate of the cost of establishing a licensing system for the (a) purchasing by and (b) sale of fireworks to members of the public.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Shadow Minister without Portfolio
The Department has no plans to make such an estimate of the cost of establishing a licensing system for the (a) purchasing by and (b) sale of fireworks to members of the public.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that energy suppliers are (a) identifying and (b) supporting customers self-disconnecting from prepayment meters.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government expects suppliers to take proactive steps to identify vulnerable consumers and offer them the necessary support. Under Ofgem’s licence conditions, energy suppliers have an obligation to identify self-disconnecting and self-rationing Prepayment Meter customers proactively.
Ofgem’s rules also require energy suppliers to agree repayment rates with a customer in arrears and to take into account a customer’s ability to pay, when calculating repayment rates for Prepayment Meter customers in debt. Energy suppliers are also expected to provide extra support by making emergency and friendly-hours credit available to all Prepayment Meter customers.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many customers have been left without energy supply as a result of an energy supplier's decision to switch smart meters from credit mode to prepayment in the past year.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department does not hold this data. The energy regulator Ofgem is responsible for ensuring energy suppliers comply with their regulatory obligations, including the requirement that suppliers must provide notice of at least seven working days in advance of the change from credit mode to the prepay method on the smart meter.
The Government welcome the steps Ofgem is taking to ensure energy supplier compliance with their obligations, including through their Market Compliance Review into customers struggling with bills.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what data his Department holds on breaches of the requirement that energy suppliers must provide notice of at least seven working days in advance of a change from credit mode to the prepay method on a smart meter.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department does not hold this data. The energy regulator Ofgem is responsible for ensuring energy suppliers comply with their regulatory obligations, including the requirement that suppliers must provide notice of at least seven working days in advance of the change from credit mode to the prepay method on the smart meter.
The Government welcome the steps Ofgem is taking to ensure energy supplier compliance with their obligations, including through their Market Compliance Review into customers struggling with bills.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many energy customers did not receive at least seven working days notice in advance of a change from credit mode to the prepay method on a smart meter.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Department does not hold this data. The energy regulator Ofgem is responsible for ensuring energy suppliers comply with their regulatory obligations, including the requirement that suppliers must provide notice of at least seven working days in advance of the change from credit mode to the prepay method on the smart meter.
The Government welcome the steps Ofgem is taking to ensure energy supplier compliance with their obligations, including through their Market Compliance Review into customers struggling with bills.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many customers have had their electricity supply disconnected for (a) debt and (b) other reasons between October 2020 and October 2022.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Ofgem collects data on disconnections of supply for debt. From October 2020 to end of December 2021 (latest data published) energy suppliers disconnected the electricity supply to 21 customers for debt. Suppliers must only use disconnection as a last resort. They must not disconnect customers in debt unless they have offered a range of repayment options and have exhausted all other means to recover a debt.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to enforce energy suppliers' Standard Licence Condition 28 which stipulates that prepayment meters should only be used where it is safe and reasonably practicable.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The enforcement of licence conditions is the responsibility of Ofgem, the independent regulator of the GB gas and electricity markets.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will require energy suppliers to ensure that Energy Support Scheme vouchers for traditional pre-payment meter users can be redeemed beyond their current expiration date.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Suppliers should take action to encourage all traditional pre-payment customers to redeem their EBSS payment during the scheme month. Replacement credit can be issued up until the scheme closing date of 30 June 2023.
Suppliers have an obligation, and must be able to evidence, that they have attempted to make a minimum of three attempts by at least two different methods to contact customers who have not redeemed their payment – Including at least one month before the expiry of the unredeemed EBSS payment. If a customer requests an expired voucher be reissued, suppliers should comply with the request.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will take steps to ensure that people who use prepayment meters and do not redeem their Energy Support Scheme vouchers before their expiration date are provided with financial support.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Suppliers should take action to encourage all traditional pre-payment customers to redeem their EBSS payment during the scheme month. Replacement credit can be issued up until the scheme closing date of 30 June 2023.
Suppliers have an obligation, and must be able to evidence, that they have attempted to make a minimum of three attempts by at least two different methods to contact customers who have not redeemed their payment – Including at least one month before the expiry of the unredeemed EBSS payment. If a customer requests an expired voucher be reissued, suppliers should comply with the request.