Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Prepayment Meters: Compensation

Tuesday 16 January 2024 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Minister met Ofgem and suppliers to reiterate expectations for the new rules on compensation for wrongful installation of prepayment meters.
  • Ofgem announced that suppliers must compensate customers appropriately if they wrongfully install prepayment meters.
  • Minister acknowledged the negative practices of forced installation but emphasized the potential benefits of prepayment meters for consumer support.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Imran Hussain Lab Bradford East
Energy
Context

There have been instances of energy companies installing prepayment meters without proper consent, leading to compensation claims by affected households.

Question

What recent discussions has the Minister had with Ofgem on the compensation payment process for households that have had prepayment meters wrongfully installed?

Answer from Amanda Solloway

I have met Ofgem and suppliers to reiterate my expectations that the new rules will be followed. Ofgem has announced that if a supplier wrongfully installs a prepayment meter, it will be expected to compensate its customers appropriately.

Answered
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Q2 Imran Hussain Lab Bradford East
Energy
Context

Despite the Government's pause on forced installation of prepayment meters last year, some companies have resumed this practice under a new rules regime.

Question

Does the Minister think that in the middle of winter we can trust energy suppliers with a history of unscrupulous practices to self-regulate? Will the Government instead legislate to ban the forced installation of prepayment meters?

Answer from Amanda Solloway

I acknowledge how awful it was that people had their homes broken into to force fit prepayment meters, but there is also a place for prepayment meters to enable people and to support people out of debt. I reassure the House that I have scrutinised every level of the regime for prepayment meters now that we are going back to reinforcement to absolutely ensure that we will not see all the scandalous practices that happened before.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Whether current rules and self-regulation are sufficient to prevent forced installations in winter

How: Acknowledges Past Issues But Reiterates Support For Prepayment Meters, Reassures Scrutiny Of The Regime

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