Cost of living: Three tips to save money on energy bills
We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info
Energy theft reports have soared amid climbing gas and electricity prices as winter looms. As a result of soaring international gas prices due to supply-side constraints sparked by Russia’s war in Ukraine and gas cuts to Europe, UK billpayers are now having to fork out double the amount they were paying last year. And with surging inflation, the cost-of-living crisis is putting even further strain on households, many of which are now facing fuel poverty. Although Prime Minister Liz Truss’s invention with the energy price guarantee knocked £1,000 off the planned October price cap for typical households, the standard family have still had to pay £500 more for annual bills since October.
As bills become increasingly harder to pay, Britons are becoming increasingly “desperate”. According to the Crimestoppers charity, reports of energy theft since 2017-18 have almost trebled, with reports jumping by a staggering 20 percent in only six months.
According to figures from Crimestoppers, there were 8,289 reports of energy theft in Britain in the year to the end of July, a huge jump from the 2,876 reports made in the 12 months to July 2018.
In the six months to the end of July, Crimestoppers recorded 4,559 energy theft reports in the UK, up from 3,730 in the six months before that, a 22 percent rise between the two periods.
The charity is contracted by the non-profit Retail Energy Code Company (RECCo) to run the service which records cases of energy theft, where victims can anonymously make reports.RECCo’s website explains: “Crimestoppers securely notify the tip-off to the relevant gas or electricity supplier for investigation.”
UK Revenue Protection Association (UKRPA), a trade body, has said that reports to the organisation soared by a staggering 54 percent in just six months, at 717 in the six-month period from July to December in 2021, up to 1,104 from January to June in 2022.
Electricity theft carries a maximum prison sentence of five years, and has the potential to push bills up for victims of the crime. Industry regulator Ofgem explains that its rules require energy companies to play an active role in “detecting, investigating and preventing the theft of electricity”.
These rules also require electricity suppliers to set up a cross-industry theft risk assessment service to help better target investigations. Ofgem also warns that tampering with electricity meters or wires is a serious health and safety hazard.
Also known as metre cheating, energy thieves tamper with metres to avoid it recording how much electricity or gas is being used, or they can try to bypass the meter completely.
Gas theft is also considered a crime. Stay Safe Energy, a service operated by Crimestoppers, reports that interfering with something as explosive and inflammable as gas also carries an enormous risk. Leaking gas is highly flammable and can be ignited very easily, with the flick of a switch all it takes to cause an explosion risking horrific injuries.
Stay Energy Safe also suggests that an alarming £400million or thereabouts worth of energy is stolen each year across Britain.
Matt Copeland, head of policy and public affairs for National Energy Action, highlighted how “desperate” the energy crisis has made Britons.
He said: “The staggering increases in the cost of energy is leading to desperation. Some households are resorting to coping tactics such as using candles instead of lights and portable BBQs instead of their oven.
“Others are resorting to electricity theft, which is illegal as well as dangerous. The fact that electricity theft has increased even before we hit the colder months of the year shows how desperate this energy crisis is making people.
Labour MP Darren Jones, chair of the business, energy and industrial strategy select committee, said: “The increased reporting of energy theft highlights the desperation households are feeling as prices skyrocket and little help is offered to the lowest earners.
“My committee has urged the Government to provide permanent help to households by kickstarting a national home insulation programme that would reduce demand and carbon emissions, and by introducing a social tariff that would see the poorest households receive cheaper bills.”
A Government spokesman told PA last month: “We are committed to cracking down on crime, including the criminal theft of electricity, which causes serious injury to people and damage to property.”
Source: Read Full Article
