In the UK, unpaid electricity bills reach record highs

Electricity prices in the UK are set to undergo further significant increases in the coming months.

REUTERS - Phil Noble

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

Unpaid electricity bills are at record highs in the UK.

The Minister of Finance and that of Energy, Industry and Business are to hold a crisis meeting with the bosses of the energy sector.

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The United Kingdom, faced with rising energy prices, is seeing its households face a difficult situation.

Next winter, some will have to choose between food and heating.

Unpaid electricity bills tripled year-on-year to £1.3billion, a record high, a sign of the impact of the soaring cost of living on Britons, according to price comparison site Uswitch .

This debt is expected to increase further as electricity rates are set to undergo further significant increases in the coming months, Uswitch said in a statement released Wednesday.

The British energy price regulator Ofgem is due to announce on August 26 an increase in the energy price cap.

It is expected to rise from 1,971 pounds a year to 3,358 pounds a year for an average household in Britain, Uswitch estimates.

Further increases could take place by next spring and bring the ceiling to 4,427 pounds.

Justina Miltienyte, head of Uswitch, calls on electricity companies to help households that are unable to pay their bills.

It is necessary, according to her, “

”.

She advises households in difficulty to call on the aid to which they may be entitled.

Of 2,000 households surveyed by Uswitch, nearly a quarter owe £206 on average.

We advise people that are falling into debt to speak to their provider to work out a more affordable payment plan.

#EnergyCrisis https://t.co/PfTSPDcmWF

— Uswitch (@UswitchUK) August 10, 2022

Many Britons have mobilized in a collective called "Don't pay".

They are calling for a reduction in energy bills to an “affordable level” or risk refusing to pay their suppliers from October 1.

An approach that aims to put pressure on the government.

The latter must also hold a crisis meeting this Thursday, August 11 with the bosses of the energy sector to ask them to find ways to cushion the increase in energy tariff ceilings this winter.

Inflation could exceed 13% in October in the United Kingdom according to the Bank of England, a record since the end of 1980, after having already reached 9.4% in June over one year, largely fueled by soaring energy prices .

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• UK

• consumption

• Energies

• Economy