The Glasgow East Member of Parliament, John Mason, is giving his backing to calls for the UK Government to ban power companies from overcharging customers with pre-payment meters.
Although it tends to be less well off households that pay for energy by way of a prepayment meter, research from the National Housing Federation calculates that British Gas, EDF and Scottish & Southern Energy will overcharge their 1.7 million UK prepay customers by £8.6 million every month over the next year.
John Mason, who represents the East End in the House of Commons, believes that the UK Labour Government should pass new laws to force the power companies to charge their pre-payment meter customers on the same rate as the people who pay their power bills every quarter.
Speaking earlier today (Tuesday), Mr Mason said:
“This is an important issue in the East End, as thousands of people in our area pay for their electricity through pre-payment meter.
“Until recently, just about all of the power companies charged pre-payment meter customers at a higher rate than anyone else. Given that it is often less well off folk that pay for their power this way, that situation was little short of sick.
“Some companies, such as E.ON, Scottish Power and npower, have now equalised the charges which they make to their prepayment meter customers with those who pay by quarterly bill. But some firms are still dragging their heels. If necessary, new laws should be passed at Westminster to force the power companies to act.
“Over the next year, 1.7 million pre-payment customers in the UK will be overcharged. This effectively takes from the poor and gives to the rich. Putting an end to this ‘Robin Hood in reverse’ could save my constituents’ thousands of pounds.”
Notes:
• The text of Early Day Motion 918, which John Mason is supporting, is as follows:
EDM 918 – NATIONAL HOUSING FEDERATION AND PREPAYMENT METER CUSTOMER: That this House welcomes Government assurances that, if necessary, legislation would be introduced to outlaw the overcharging of prepayment meter customers; notes that E.ON, Scottish Power and npower have equalised charges which they make to their prepayment meter customers with those who pay by quarterly bill, but that British Gas, EDF and Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) continue to charge their prepay customers more; further notes that the National Housing Federation calculates that British Gas, EDF and SSE will overcharge their 1.7 million prepay customers by £8.6 million every month over the next year, with British Gas charging its prepayment customers £77 more over 2009 than those on quarterly bills, SSE charging £38 more and EDF charging £19 more; refutes the claim by Ofgem that it has been successful in its campaign to stop this overcharging; congratulates the National Housing Federation on championing the cause of some of the most vulnerable people on low incomes; and believes it is time for the Government to introduce legislation to equalise prepay bills with those charged to people on a quarterly basis.
