London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2025

Energy chiefs fear 40% of Britons could fall into fuel poverty in ‘truly horrific winter’

Energy chiefs fear 40% of Britons could fall into fuel poverty in ‘truly horrific winter’

Firms inundated with calls from customers as bosses fear impact of October’s scheduled cap rise
As many as four in 10 people in Britain could fall into fuel poverty when the price cap rises again this autumn, energy bosses have told MPs as they called for more government support for vulnerable households facing a “truly horrific” winter.

Michael Lewis, the chief executive of E.ON UK, said between 30% and 40% of people in Britain might go into fuel poverty from October when the industry regulator, Ofgem, is again expected to put up the annual limit on tariffs.

“We are expecting a severe impact on customers’ ability to pay,” he told MPs at the business, energy and industrial strategy select committee in parliament, adding that he expected debts of customers to rise by 50%, or £800m.

He said that a larger number of people moving into fuel poverty would lead to a significant increase in bad debt.

Customers have been calling energy providers expressing their worry at the huge increase in their bills.

ScottishPower alone had received 8,000 calls from customers concerned about their ability to pay, its chief executive, Keith Anderson, told MPs.

He said he was “massively concerned” for people facing rising bills who would “really, really struggle” and called for the introduction of a £1,000 deficit fund or social tariff for vulnerable customers.

The fund would take £1,000 off the bills of the poorest people in the country in October and the government or consumers would then pay this off over 10 years, he suggested.

The energy regulator lifted the price cap on bills earlier this month, sending the average household dual-fuel tariff from £1,278 to £1,971. That is due to increase again in October, with some experts expecting the price cap to hit £2,600.

“Come October that’s going to get horrific, truly horrific,” said Anderson. “It has got to a stage now where the size and scale of it is beyond what I can deal with, beyond what I think this industry can deal with. I think it needs a massive shift, a significant shift in the government policy and approach towards this.”

The EDF chief executive, Simone Rossi, said it had seen a 40% increase in calls from customers worried about debt.

“We are concerned about what is in front of us,” he said. “Unfortunately pre-payment customers are being hit first. We now see bills being higher for longer, so I would expect government to reassess in short order to see what is possible.”

Earlier the chief executive of Ofgem, Jonathan Brearley, had said that increases in fuel bills would be investigated amid concerns that suppliers may be charging households unfairly.

Gas prices in particular have surged in recent months, prompting almost every household energy supplier to raise prices to the maximum allowed. However, some consumer groups have argued that energy firms have raised prices by more than needed, to strengthen their own balance sheets at customers’ expense.

Brearley told BBC Radio 4: “We’re going to take a close look at those direct debits. We’re going to make sure that they are raised fairly – clearly prices have gone up – and if they haven’t been we’ll take action and make sure companies put it right.

“You shouldn’t take more than is necessary. You shouldn’t be building up a credit balance.”

He said price increases must be brought in “reasonably and fairly” and not for “other reasons outside of the customer interest”.

Energy companies should be ringfencing customer money so that it is only used to pay for their gas and electricity, he said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
×