The number of families with prepayment energy meters who've been cut off as they can't afford to top up has ballooned by 220%, shocking new figures show.
Citizens Advice said more than 6,000 homes with a prepayment meter had asked for help with their bills between January and March this year, compared to only 2,067 cases during the same period last year.
Campaigners are pointing to the numbers as evidence that the fallout from record energy prices and huge build up of debt could impact millions of households for years to come, with families in a vicious circle of taking emergency top-ups from their energy supplier, which are repaid the next time they can afford to top up, leaving them short again. The problem has been made worse by the end of the £400 Energy Bill Support Scheme, which struggling families had come to rely on, according to founder of Energy Support and Advice UK, Gemma Hatvani.
