What is a prepayment meter? Three firms allowed to force installations
EDF, ScottishPower, and Octopus have been granted approval to resume force-fitting prepayment meters in people’s homes nearly a year after the practice was banned following a scandal.
The British energy market regulator, Ofgem, said the three energy companies can install meters again after they passed the requirements. The three suppliers passed a set of conditions, which included conducting internal audits of installations and offers of any appropriate compensation to households wrongfully treated.
The new criteria also includes a demand that the suppliers must make at least 10 attempts to contact a customer before a prepayment meter is installed and carry out a site welfare visit before proceeding.
They have been told to refrain from installing prepayment meters in vulnerable households, including those that need a “continuous supply” of energy for health reasons, homes with occupants aged over 75 with no support in their house or with children under
