MSE News: Surge in energy firms switching people onto prepay meters remotely – your rights

MSE_Petar

If you're struggling to pay your energy bills and have built up a debt on your account, your supplier may want to move you onto a prepayment meter so they can collect repayments over time. But prepay is about £70 a year more expensive than direct debit (on typical use), and there's an added risk of being cut off from heat or power if you run out of credit. In our MSE News story below, we explain your rights to refuse prepayment.

Read the full story:
'Surge in energy firms switching people onto prepay meters remotely – your rights and how to protect yourself from a forced switch'

If you haven’t already, join the forum to reply.

[Deleted User]

Didn't we work out that in many cases prepay is cheaper than direct debit?

Mobtr

MSE_Petar said:

If you're struggling to pay your energy bills and have built up a debt on your account, your supplier may want to move you onto a prepayment meter so they can collect repayments over time. But prepay is about £70 a year more expensive than direct debit (on typical use), and there's an added risk of being cut off from heat or power if you run out of credit. In our MSE News story below, we explain your rights to refuse prepayment.

Read the full story:
'Surge in energy firms switching people onto prepay meters remotely – your rights and how to protect yourself from a forced switch'

If you haven’t already, join the forum to reply.

Can you please get your facts right. Prepay used to be more expensive but it is now the cheapest form of payment with most companies 

grn99

Becoming quite a topical subject and there are legitimate reasons for refusal: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/energy/energy-supply/get-help-paying-your-bills/stop-your-energy-supplier-installing-a-prepayment-meter/

EssexHebridean

Deleted_User said:

Didn't we work out that in many cases prepay is cheaper than direct debit?

We did for electricity - I'm not sure how it works out when gas is in the mix though? 

The_Green_Hornet

Surge? No.

diystarter7

Having seeked help from posters on MSE, thankfully I am steering clear of these 'smart meters' as they are 'smart' for the supplier and not the user IMO.  Only a mater of time before variable tariffs thought the day come in, ie much higher when people get ready to go to work and then when they come back and make dinner.

[Deleted User]

diystarter7 said:

Having seeked help from posters on MSE, thankfully I am steering clear of these 'smart meters' as they are 'smart' for the supplier and not the user IMO.  Only a mater of time before variable tariffs thought the day come in, ie much higher when people get ready to go to work and then when they come back and make dinner.

At which time, you will be paying the "much higher rate" for the entire period as you will not have a smart meter for determining the time-of-use.

EssexHebridean

diystarter7 said:

Having seeked help from posters on MSE, thankfully I am steering clear of these 'smart meters' as they are 'smart' for the supplier and not the user IMO.  Only a mater of time before variable tariffs thought the day come in, ie much higher when people get ready to go to work and then when they come back and make dinner.

You know that variable tariffs already exist, and have done for decades, right? 

deano2099

diystarter7 said:

Having seeked help from posters on MSE, thankfully I am steering clear of these 'smart meters' as they are 'smart' for the supplier and not the user IMO.  Only a mater of time before variable tariffs thought the day come in, ie much higher when people get ready to go to work and then when they come back and make dinner.

And energy companies, being the benevolent sort, will charge those without smart meters the lower rate all the time right? And not just either charge them the higher rate, or claim to "estimate it based on average usage" which somehow always works out as more expensive?

Mrs_Gardener

I have not got a smart meter due to a clause I saw in the EON contract from 2019 "If you’ve got a smart meter, we can disconnect the energy without visiting your property. For any other kind of meter, you’d have to give us access to it. If you don’t, we might have to get a warrant and we’ll charge you for that." I didn't want to take a chance of someone making an error and cutting me off - it was just the worry about human error that bothered me as I have always managed to pay my gas and electricity bills, but I feel so sorry for the people struggling to pay and now the energy companies can change their meters to pre-pay without the need to go to court and get a warrant. No system is infallible so there is always a risk that the change to pre-pay or disconnection could happen to a customer who owed nothing.