Ofgem has revealed that the end of forced installation of controversial energy prepayment meters only extends until the end of March.
The watchdog said the date, that household energy suppliers had agreed to, also included a temporary halt to remote transfers for customers currently on smart meters.
The government had suggested last week that the practice of forcing indebted customers onto prepayment meters had ended with the agreement of firms.
There was no suggestion that the date was temporary though it coincides with the 31 March deadline for Ofgem to complete its subsequent review of the treatment of vulnerable customers.
The probe was ordered by the government following a newspaper investigation that revealed debt collectors working on behalf of British Gas had forced their way into the homes of vulnerable customers, including people with disabilities.
The Times further claimed that employees of the company used by British Gas were incentivised with bonuses to fit prepayment meters.
They are controversial because gas and electricity typically costs more while they also leave users at the mercy of decisions between heating or eating amid the wider cost of living crisis.
Suppliers were asked to review their processes for dealing with customers in arrears as part of the regulator’s “intensive” investigation.
The number of struggling households has risen sharply over the past year as gas and electricity bills have hit record levels, largely as a result of surging wholesale costs exacerbated by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
An additional 600,000 homes were on prepayment meters last year.
Confirmation that the forced installation ban was temporary came in a letter to suppliers from Ofgem’s chief executive Jonathan Brearley, who…
