The new Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Grant Shapps, has announced that Energy firms have agreed to stop forced installation of prepayment meters in the homes of financially vulnerable people.
Earlier this week Mr Shapps gave energy firms a deadline to decide on what actions they would take to address their failings, as the news broke that they were mistreating financially vulnerable customers. Energy firms were making poor internal decisions which failed to protect their vulnerable customers and were then using courts and bailiffs to force entry to homes to fit pre-payment meters, causing huge distress to families and individuals.
Grant Shapps also accused the energy regulator of 'having the wool pulled over their eyes' and found that most energy suppliers were falling short on correcting their ways. He also said halting forced installation was “only the beginning” of fixing the “abhorrent” practice of forcibly fitting prepayment meters into vulnerable customers’ homes.
Responding to today’s announcement, Dan White policy, and campaigns officer at DR UK and one of the leads at the Disability Poverty Campaign Group, which has been instrumental in calling for a ban, said “At last. For months now ourselves at the DPCG have written to, talked with , campaigned on , and met with ministers, regulators and others, demanding that this brutal and immoral practice be ended. By acting along with many other indomitable campaign groups and charities we have won our first battle to restore the rights of Disabled people and those who are financially vulnerable. Forced installations may have ended, but we must now look at how we respond and what further actions we call for to ensure that Disabled people have the financial support needed to pay our energy bills. “
However, I must say a huge thank to the near-700 people who took advantage of our Action Network letter campaign by writing to their local MP demanding this callous treatment of vulnerable and Disabled people come to an end, thank you, you made a huge impact which no doubt influenced todays response.”