Energy firms paid out £152 million to vulnerable customers over past six years
Fuel vouchers and advice on how to save energy have been funded by £150 million in payments and fines paid by firms for misdemeanours such as incorrect billing, poor customer service and abuse of wholesale energy markets.
The Energy Redress Scheme has been funded by money paid to Ofgem by energy companies which have breached regulations since 2018.
Ofgem said the funds, that are then paid out as grants, have helped 647 projects which support vulnerable consumers, provide energy advice, and back the development of net zero policies.
Ovo Energy recently paid £2 million to the scheme for failings in how the supplier handled customer complaints.
A separate investigation last year into Beatrice Offshore Windfarm Limited resulted in the firm paying £33.14 million for breaching energy market rules.
Ofgem said more than £55 million had been allocated to fuel voucher projects, providing help to vulnerable customers at risk of disconnection from their energy supply.
Cathryn Scott, director for market oversight and enforcement at Ofgem, said: 'Protecting customers and ensuring they're treated fairly is at the heart of Ofgem's mission.
'That's why we make sure that when energy companies break the rules, they make amends by contributing to projects that make our energy system fairer and support those in need.
'£152 million is a huge sum of money and has helped thousands of people all over the country struggling with bills, as well as contributing to projects that help people decarbonise and learn more about their energy consumption.
'Ofgem's enforcement function is a powerful weapon in our regulatory arsenal, evidenced by the more than £92 million in compensation to customers, redress payments and fines successfully handed out in 2024 alone.
'The latest milestone of securing £150 million in redress payments for good causes could not have happened without the thorough investigative work of our compliance and enforcement teams or the Energy Saving Trust who ensure the money is targeted to reach those in need.'
The Citizens Advice Energyworks project in Brighton and Hove was recently awarded almost £528,000 by the scheme to help all city residents in fuel poverty with free and impartial energy advice.
At the end of last year, research showed that more than 16,000 households in Brighton and Hove were living in fuel poverty, Ofgem said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
24 minutes ago
- The Independent
Workers may not get ‘day one' protection against unfair dismissal despite government pledge
Proposals to give new workers 'day one' protection against unfair dismissal has suffered a heavy defeat in the House of Lords on Wednesday. The defeat is a new blow for the government as the proposals were a Labour manifesto commitment. The House of Lords backed by 304 votes to 160, majority 144, a Conservative -led measure which would instead reduce the existing qualifying period for the workplace safeguard from two years to six months. It was the latest setback suffered by the Labour frontbench to its Employment Rights Bill in the upper chamber and puts peers on a collision course with the administration, given it was an explicit election pledge. The change will be considered by MPs when the draft law returns to the Commons during so-called 'ping-pong', when legislation is batted between the two Houses until agreement is reached. The proposed reforms also give workers other 'day one' rights, such as sick pay, paternity leave and the right to request flexible working. In addition, the Bill would introduce new restrictions on 'fire-and-rehire' processes when employees are let go and then re-employed on new contracts with worse pay or conditions. Business minister Baroness Jones of Whitchurch told peers: 'This Government was elected on a manifesto to provide unfair dismissal protections from day one of employment. 'Not two years, not six months, but day one. 'To deliver this commitment we will remove the qualifying period for these rights.' She added: 'These amendments would not deliver on the Government's manifesto commitment to introduce a day one right against unfair dismissal, leaving many newly hired employees without robust employment protections.' However, Tory shadow business minister Lord Sharpe of Epsom said: 'We are debating a change that will fundamentally alter the balance of risk in hiring, and at a time when unemployment has risen in every month this government has been in power.' He added: 'This clause will do nothing to promote fairness in the workplace. 'It will erode flexibility, it will choke opportunity, and it will harden the barriers that those on the margins already face.' He pointed out the Government's own impact assessment which said that introducing the day one right to claim unfair dismissal 'could damage the employment prospects of people who are trying to re-enter the labour market, especially if they are observed to be riskier to hire', including younger workers with less experience and ex-offenders. Lord Sharpe went on: 'The Government already knows and thinks this so why are they doing this? 'So I don't believe this clause is ready. I don't believe that it's safe, I don't believe that it's wise.' Independent crossbencher Lord Vaux of Harrowden said: 'With this Bill, the Government is knowingly and deliberately damaging the life chances of the most vulnerable, in particular young people trying to get their first step on the employment ladder, and for no apparent tangible benefit. 'I urge them to think again.' The Government was subsequently dealt a further blow as peers backed by 248 votes to 150, majority 98, a change to the legislation, proposed by the Liberal Democrats, which would force ministers to strengthen whistleblower protections.
Reuters
24 minutes ago
- Reuters
Volvo Cars pauses sales of some cars in US as tariffs pinch profits
STOCKHOLM, July 16 (Reuters) - Volvo Cars ( opens new tab said it has scaled back its U.S. model lineup this year, among the first examples of a major automaker halting U.S. shipments as President Donald Trump's tariffs make it harder to sell a broad range of vehicles profitably. The Swedish carmaker, which is owned by China's Geely Holding, told Reuters this week that it has been pulling sedans and station wagons from its U.S. portfolio as interest has waned. Volvo, which releases quarterly results on Thursday, is one of the most exposed automakers to rising tariffs as the majority of its vehicles are produced in Europe or China. Import duties on vehicles made outside of the United States that were imposed on April 1 have made market conditions more challenging for foreign sellers to the U.S. market. U.S. tariffs of 27.5% on European-made cars and over 100% on Chinese imports have forced automakers to rethink their product strategies, with Aston Martin (AML.L), opens new tab limiting U.S. exports and Nissan (7201.T), opens new tab suspending U.S. production of Canadian-bound cars. Industry experts have warned that automakers that cannot absorb the cost of border taxes themselves or pass it on to consumers will simply stop selling those models in the U.S. market. Other industries, such as apparel and toys, are experiencing similar effects. "If you're going to reduce sales to the U.S., then you'd want to eke more value out of the sales that you do," said Andy Leyland, co-founder of supply chain specialists SC Insight. Volvo Cars will now only sell around half of its 13-model global lineup in the U.S. market. Other than its V60 station wagon, it will exclusively sell SUVs in the country. That means that sedans will no longer be sold in the U.S. Production of the S60 at Volvo's South Carolina plant stopped last year, sales of the China-made S90 have been halted and Volvo said on Monday the new ES90 sedan cannot be sold profitably in the country. Globally, it is also dropping one of its last remaining station wagons, the V90, as demand declines. Volvo Cars told Reuters its European-made electric EX40 had also been temporarily halted, but it would resume sales "shortly". The company did not provide a reason. Even Volvo's ambitions for its flagship budget SUV, the EX30 - meant to be a big U.S. seller - have been curtailed. Volvo only offers the pricier dual-motor version at $46,195 to U.S. buyers rather than the cheaper single-motor version, with a promised sticker price of $35,000, similar to Tesla's (TSLA.O), opens new tab Model 3. When faced with tariffs, carmakers tend to focus on selling high-margin models, but Andy Palmer, former CEO of Aston Martin, said such a strategy could have mixed results. "Some (customers) will either go to a different company" or be forced to buy a model "they didn't necessarily want or need," Palmer said. Bill Wallace, owner of Wallace Automotive Group that sells Volvos in Florida confirmed shoppers are quick to pick other brands. "At the end of the day, even with a luxury model, they are going to compare their payment with a BMW, Lexus or a similar model ... and if it's a little bit higher ... you're just gonna lose the business," he said. Since 2022, Volvo has been hit by software bugs, supply chain snags, and tariff-related delays that slowed the rollout of its flagship electric EX30 and EX90. By the time deliveries began in 2024, EV demand had cooled, prices had spiked and new tariffs had kicked in. "Customers love them(Volvo), but they are just at the wrong place at the wrong time right now, Wallace said. Although it is produced at Volvo's U.S. factory in South Carolina, the high-end EX90 is hurt by tariffs because most of its components are European-made, which are now subject to 25% tariffs. The EX90 starts at $81,290 but struggled to gain traction with U.S. consumers, with less than 2,000 sold in the first half of 2025. Its South Carolina factory can make up to 150,000 of the cars annually. The company said on Wednesday it would add its popular SUV XC60 hybrid to the factory in 2026. ($1 = 9.7454 Swedish crowns)
The Independent
36 minutes ago
- The Independent
Starmer to host Merz in chancellor's first official visit to UK
Sir Keir Starmer will host German chancellor Friedrich Merz on his first official visit to the UK on Thursday as the Prime Minister seeks to boost ties on defence and tackling people smuggling operations. Berlin agreed last year to make facilitating the smuggling of migrants to the UK a criminal offence in a move that will give law enforcements more powers to investigate the supply and storage of small boats to be used for Channel crossings. Mr Merz is expected to commit to adopting the law change by the end of the year. 'Chancellor Merz's commitment to make necessary changes to German law to disrupt the supply lines of the dangerous vessels which carry illegal migrants across the Channel is hugely welcome,' Sir Keir said. 'As the closest of allies, we will continue to work closely together to deliver on the priorities that Brits and Germans share.' The Prime Minister has been seeking to strengthen ties with EU countries, including to bring down small boat crossings, and last week secured a migrant return agreement with France. The UK and Germany, two of the biggest providers of support to Ukraine, signed a defence pact last year with the aim of closer co-operation in the face of a growing threat from Russia. During Mr Merz's visit, the leaders are expected to unveil an agreement to jointly produce defence exports such as Boxer armoured vehicles and Typhoon jets and commit to developing their deep precision strike missile in the next decade, with a range of more than 2,000 kilometres. The chancellor and Sir Keir will also sign a bilateral friendship and cooperation treaty that includes plans to set up a new UK-Germany Business Forum. Sir Keir said: 'The Treaty we will sign today, the first of its kind, will bring the UK and Germany closer than ever. It not only marks the progress we have already made and the history we share. 'It is the foundation on which we go further to tackle shared problems and invest in shared strengths.' A series of commercial investments are being announced to coincide with the visit, worth more than £200 million and will create more than 600 new jobs. These include defence tech company Stark setting up a production facility in Swindon, its first outside Germany, and conversational AI firm Cognigy investing £50 million and expanding its UK team from 13 to 150.
