EDF points pressing warning as 1000’s extra prospects sink into vitality debt
Energy debt is on the rise, with 53,000 more EDF customers in debt compared to last year, warns the energy firm. The total debt among these customers has surged by over £70m year on year and EDF has spent £27m on initiatives to help customers since last year.
EDF has installed over half of all measures across all suppliers as part of the Great British Insulation Scheme (GBIS). This increase in debt comes as EDF predicts that energy bills will rise by £146 for average billpayers on Ofgem’s price cap in October.
The energy giant is outlining three urgent priorities for the new Government on energy affordability: a review of key energy efficiency schemes, action to introduce targeted energy bill support, and the creation of a central cross-utility database of vulnerable customers.
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While EDF’s measures have helped reduce the average amount of customer debt of those it supported by 21 per cent, this hasn’t stopped the overall number of customers falling into debt from rising. The impact of increased prices due to high wholesale costs, along with the cost of living crisis, has significantly affected consumer energy debt.
The value of CC debt has risen 65 per cent since 2022, while the average debt per customer has increased by over 45 per cent and now stands at over £1100, reports Birmingham Live.
EDF is stepping up its game this winter, promising more support for customers and has lobbed the ball into the Government’s court with a trio of top priorities to consider for energy affordability. They want a revamp of the Great British Insulation Scheme to spike uptake and slash bills for good.
They’re also pushing hard for a social energy tariff to lock in lower rates for the less well-off who can’t keep up with the global price swings, and reckon it’s time to spruce up the Warm Home Discount scheme too.
Lastly, they’re gunning for a central list of vulnerable homes using gov data to supercharge support efforts, piggybacking on plans for a utility-wide VIP customer list.
Philippe Commaret, the big boss of customer affairs at EDF, dished out the harsh truth: “Our reliance on globally traded fossil fuels means that prices have unfortunately increased significantly over the past few years. And whilst the Ofgem price cap has reduced over the previous months, our price cap forecasting service predicts that October’s will increase by £146 to an average of £1,714 and increase again in January.”
“We have continued offering assistance to those in need, providing debt relief alongside a range of financial support services, and kept our fixed prices as low as possible to help, but with costs rising customers need urgent assistance in both the short and long term.”
