British Gas offers energy debt grants as 820,000 homes face bills hike | Personal Finance | Finance

Hard-up Britons who are in energy debt can get grants to help them clear their debts from British Gas.

People can get support from the Individuals and Families fund, which is part of the British Gas Energy Trust.

The fund is available to all Britons and there is no need to be a British Gas customer to apply.

A household will need to have approached a money advice agency before applying for the help, so they can understand their options for getting help.

They will need to evidence they have approached a relevant agency on their application form.

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To be eligible for a grant, a person must also meet all of these criteria:

• A resident of England, Scotland or Wales
• Have not received a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust within the last two years
• Seeking a grant to clear an outstanding debt on a current or open gas, electricity or dual fuel energy account
• The account must be in the person’s name or a member of their household, and it must relate to their main residence
• Have an electric or gas debt and be facing fuel poverty.

The support could be a huge help as research suggests tens of thousands of Britons could see their energy bills increase.

Analysis from Elexon found some 820,000 households who have electricity meters that rely on the Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) could see their bills go up.

This is because these meters will stop functioning after March 31, 2024. Many people on Economy 7 and other multi-rate tariffs rely on the RTS service to allow them to make the most of cheaper rates during off-peak periods.

The energy meters can automatically turn on and off heating and hot water systems during certain hours of the day.

This will affect some 100,000 customers at Eon Next, Octopus Energy (including Bulb) and Scottish Power, who still rely on RTS meters.

A further 50,000 customers with British Gas, EDF and Ovo Energy (including Boost and SSE) also still use RTS meters.

From the beginning of April next year, these meters could be left stuck on peak electricity rate.

There is also the risk a household’s heating systems could be left permanently on or off after the signal dies.

An Ofgem spokesperson said: “Suppliers have to make sure meters are safe and accurate, and this sometimes means replacing the meter. We expect suppliers to communicate clearly to their customers about this.”

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