Energy meter horror as 500,000 homes forced onto ‘expensive’ choice during tough winter

The report revealed that these warrants are generally granted through an obscure court process in which magistrates who sign them off have little or no oversight of people’s vulnerability or health issues.

In one example of a court in the North of England, magistrates signed off a single batch of 496 utility warrants in an astonishing three minutes and 51 seconds, as a debt agent representing several major energy firms dialled in by telephone.

This comes as new data has revealed a staggering two million households have been in debt over their energy bills during the second quarter of this year. As household bills have hit new highs every few months, a record number of Britons are in arrears over their electricity payments.

The ever-growing fossil fuel energy crisis has placed Britons in a precarious position, as data from the energy regulator Ofgem has revealed that at the end of June, 2,347,511 households were behind on their electricity bills and 1,858,585 on their gas bills. Within just three months, both figures have risen by about a quarter, and by nearly two-thirds since the end of 2020.

READ MORE: Energy bill horror as thousands of households in dark over £400

Article source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1706103/energy-prepayment-meter-horror-britons-forced-onto-expensive-choice-warrant-winter