Almost a third of Scottish households with prepayment meters have not redeemed their energy rebate vouchers, according to the latest UK Government figures.
More than 867,000 vouchers were issued in Scotland under the Energy Bill Support Scheme between October and December last year.
But more than 273,000 have not been redeemed, meaning as much as £54m of support has been unclaimed.
Edinburgh and Glasgow had some of the lowest redemption rates in the UK, at 59% and 62%, respectively.
Across the UK around 1.9 million vouchers for consumers remain unclaimed, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy statistics showed.
This is despite increased uptake of the vouchers, which hit its highest level in January.
Almost one in five households in Scotland use prepayment meters for their gas or electricity. Most households will have £400 automatically taken off their electricity bills in six instalments, or will have the money added to their accounts.
However, those on traditional prepayment meters need the vouchers to get the discount.
The prepayment vouchers are only valid for 90 days and December’s vouchers must be claimed by 8 March.
If a voucher does expire, customers can ask for it to be reissued. Suppliers should contact consumers if vouchers are not redeemed.
Conor Forbes, policy director with Advice Direct Scotland, said: “With energy prices still incredibly high, it’s vital that households get all the support they’re entitled to.
“We would urge any households in Scotland who have a prepayment meter to check whether you have been sent a voucher and use it before it expires.
“It’s concerning that so many people have not redeemed their vouchers and we don’t want to see a similar situation when December’s vouchers expire next month.”
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