The number of Scots looking for advice on how to pay their energy bills has more than quadrupled in the last two years.
A report out today from Consumer Scotland found that those living in homes reliant on prepayment meters or electric heaters were most likely to be struggling financially.
The watchdog also found that demand for advice on energy bills has soared in line with rising costs.
Advice Direct Scotland said the number of calls it received per day in December had risen to 370 on average, up from just 80 during the same month in 2021.
Energy giants have reported record profits as a result of the cost of oil and gas has rocketed in recent years.
Despite UK Government intervention to cap domestic energy prices many people have been left struggling to heat their homes.
A recent summit organised by the Scottish Government asked advice groups and charities on what more could be done to support consumers.
Andrew Bartlett, chief executive of Advice Direct Scotland, said: "We have witnessed a sharp rise in the daily number of calls seeking support.
"We continue to encourage anyone who is finding it difficult to cope with their energy bills to contact our advisors, and it’s important to recognise that many people are still struggling despite the warmer weather.
"I pay tribute to all our expert call handlers who have helped so many households across Scotland with their energy worries.”
It comes as a separate report found that 920,000 households across the country are estimated to be "fuel poor".
The Scottish House Conditions Survey found that 48 per cent of households were rated below EPC C.
The government has committed to bringing every home to at least EPC C by 2033.
Lib Dem MSP Liam McArthur said: "Insulation and other energy efficiency measures are vital to bringing down bills and tackling the climate emergency, but ministers are content to work at snail’s pace.
"The half-hearted environmentalism of the SNP and Greens just won’t cut it. They are too busy dumping sewage into rivers or missing climate change targets to offer credible solutions.
"We are calling for a national emergency insulation programme all across the country, with a particular focus on those homes which are hardest to heat."
Gillian Martin, the Scottish Government energy minister, said: "The energy price crisis has not gone away.
"Average bills still remain twice what they were two years ago and our latest estimate is that around a third of all households in Scotland – 850,000 – will still be living in fuel poverty, with 69% of those households in extreme fuel poverty.
"This is an unacceptable situation and we continue to call on the UK Government to do more with the fiscal and policy levers available to them to help the fuel poor.
"Although energy is a reserved policy area, The Scottish Government is continuing to do everything we can within our limited powers to support as many people as possible with their energy bills."
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