Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 3 May to Question 182453, on Energy: Telephone Services, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a minimum standard performance requirement for the administration of the Priority Service Register by each individual company.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Ofgem, the independently energy regulator, requires energy companies to set up and maintain best practices in supporting vulnerable people on the Priority Service Register and ensure they receive consistent and high-quality priority services in a timely manner. Ofgem constantly assesses the experience of consumers in vulnerable situations and take action to address the issues they face as energy users.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 3 May 2023 to Question 182452, on Energy: Telephone Services, whether she expects Ofgem to publish evidence of compliance on areas needing improvement.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government want domestic consumers to be able to access their energy supplier’s telephone services easily and without incurring high charges. OFGEM has undertaken a compliance exercise with suppliers and the Government would expect OFGEM to publish the results of this exercise in due course.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of requiring energy suppliers to operate dedicated phone lines for customers on a Priority Services Register.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Ofgem rules require energy suppliers and network operators to establish a Priority Service Register of their domestic customers in vulnerable situations and provide a range of services free of charge such as, wherever possible, advanced notice of schedules power cuts, priority support in an emergency, regular meter reading service. The administration of the register, however, is a commercial matter for individual companies.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of capacity of energy supplier customer service phone lines to meet customer demand.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Ofgem is currently undertaking proactive market-wide assessments of energy suppliers’ performance on key areas in the form of Market Compliance Reviews. Their review published on 2 February looked at customer service and complaints performance from information submitted by 17 of the biggest domestic energy suppliers. The review found weaknesses across all suppliers and Ofgem has since communicated the ratings to all suppliers and has started compliance engagement on areas needing improvement.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment his Department has made of the extent to which energy suppliers are advising customers to make less frequent use of medical equipment which impacts their energy usage.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Energy suppliers can provide advice on how to reduce household energy bills. They should not, however, advise on the energy usage needed for medical equipment. Consumers in vulnerable situations can access free support services to help manage their energy via their supplier or network.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the guidance by Ofgem entitled Involuntary PPM: Supplier Code of Practice, published on 18 April 2023, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the requirement for a supplier to make at least 10 attempts to engage with a customer before the involuntary installation of a prepayment meter.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Government sees the Code of Practice as a step in the right direction, with better protections for vulnerable households and increased scrutiny of supplier practices.
The Government has always been clear that, action is needed to crack down on the practice of forcing people onto prepayment meters, especially the most vulnerable.
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero will continue to work closely with Ofgem and industry to see that the code leads to positive changes for vulnerable consumers and won't hesitate to intervene again if necessary.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the guidance by Ofgem entitled Involuntary PPM: Supplier Code of Practice, published on 18 April 2023, whether Ofgem plans to publish inspection reports on each supplier's activities related to involuntary prepayment meter installation.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Ofgem has agreed the Code of Practice with suppliers, consumer groups and charities. The regulator will authorise suppliers to re-start installing prepayment meters only when it is satisfied that the suppliers have the right procedures in place. The Government sees the Code of Practice as a step in the right direction, with increased scrutiny of supplier practices and redress measures where prepayment meters were wrongly installed.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the guidance by Ofgem entitled Involuntary PPM: Supplier Code of Practice, published on 18 April 2023, whether (a) Ofgem and (b) his Department has adopted standard (i) financial assessment protocols and (ii) decision matrices to assess the ability to pay of any household they have reason to believe has a medium risk characteristic.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Ofgem has agreed the Code of Practice with suppliers, consumer groups and charities. The regulator will authorise suppliers to re-start installing prepayment meters only when it is satisfied that the suppliers have the right procedures in place.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the guidance by Ofgem entitled Involuntary PPM: Supplier Code of Practice, published on 18 April 2023, whether Ofgem plans to publish supplier board reports on all activities related to involuntary prepayment meter installation.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Under Ofgem’s Supplier Code of Practice, Supplier Boards must have regular and ongoing oversight of all activities related to Involuntary PPM. This must include Director level sign-off of reporting provided to Ofgem. It is a matter for Ofgem as the independent regulator, but Government will be watching closely to see that this is enforced, as required.
Asked by: Beth Winter (Labour - Cynon Valley)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the guidance by Ofgem entitled Involuntary PPM: Supplier Code of Practice, published on 18 April 2023, whether Ofgem plans to make the record of supplier attempts to contact a customer available to each customer.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As per the Code of Practice, suppliers will be required to maintain a record of each attempted contact with a customer. If the customer wishes to request a copy of this record they may do so, but this would be a matter for the customer and supplier.