Bill help worth hundreds is unclaimed as energy and water debt surges – are you missing out on hundreds of pounds?

Money owed to water and energy companies has topped £7billion while households miss out on vital support to help manage bills.

Household energy debt alone has doubled from what it was in 2021, according to a report by the National Audit Office (NAO).

At the same time, customers struggle to contact their providers and are not always aware of support available to help manage their bills.

The government-backed office scrutinises public spending for Parliament, and has said industry regulators Ofgem, Ofwat and Ofcom must increase awareness of support among other actions.

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “Regulators have made progress to support consumers, but they’re not keeping up with the pressure now facing millions of households.

“With debt rising sharply, it's more important than ever to make regulation work so that people know what support is available and can contact essential providers when they need to.”

Not sure what’s available?

Here we explain the support available if you’re struggling to stay on top of essential bills…

What is a broadband social tariff?

The NAO found only a third of eligible broadband customers and 39% of water customers who are battling bills are aware of social tariffs.

These special tariffs cap water and broadband bills at a certain limit for qualifying low- income households.

This can mean savings worth hundreds of pounds a year – not to be sniffed at.

You’ll usually need to be on certain benefits to qualify for the scheme.

Virgin Media offers three different social tariff broadband contracts, starting from £12.50 a month for 15Mbps fibre broadband.

BT’s Home Essentials plan is another option.

Contact your broadband supplier to see if you can make the switch.

What help can I get with my water bill?

Water companies also run schemes to help bring down bills for struggling customers.  

Unlike most other bills, you can’t switch supplier and your provider will depend upon where you live.

This means the help on offer will vary across the country.

Get in touch with your provider to find out what’s available.

As an example, Severn Trent’s Big Difference is available to homes where household income is less than £24,454 and you can get up to £411 off your annual water bill.

Or Thames Water offers a discount of between 25% and 99% on your bill if you qualify for its WaterHelp scheme. You’ll usually be eligible if your annual bill is more than 5% of your net income.

What is a energy debt repayment plan?

Energy customers on repayment plans owe around £1,000 less than those without one in place, according to the NAO.

This is simply where you work out an agreement with your supplier to pay off debt that has mounted up in regular instalments that you can afford.

The first thing to do if you are finding energy debt overwhelming is to contact your supplier.

They may ask for more information to better understand your situation or signpost you on to more help.

What help can I get with energy bill debt?

If you’ve fallen behind on energy bills, you could get help worth thousands of pounds with free grants, which means you don’t have to repay the cash.

The grants are offered by charities funded by major energy companies.

You’ll have to meet different criteria to qualify for the scheme.  

For example, British Gas’ Individual and Families Fund is open to prepayment meter and credit customers who are up to £1,700 in debt. You don’t even need to be a customer of the energy giant to apply.

You’ll need to have a household income of less than £20,328 a year, or someone in the household has more than three children, is registered disabled and receives a disability benefits or carers Allowance.

The account needs to be active and registered to your current home address.

Crucially, you’ll also need to have received help from a money advice agency or used a partnering self help benefit calculator.

Or the E.ON Next Energy Fund helps customers will write off debt through its Provisional Award Scheme. There are terms attached to the award and you’ll need to pass a three-month period where you meet payments that cover your average use.

The fund can also provide replacement appliances if yours has broken for models that are more energy efficient, including cookers, fridge-freezers or washing machines.  

Get in touch with your energy provider to check what help is available.

Which benefits are available to help with energy bills?

Making sure you are claiming all the benefits you are entitled to can help ease the pressure of rising energy bills.

The Winter Fuel Payment, Warm Home Discount and Cold Weather Payments are among the support to help households with energy bills.

You can also get help top up income to pay through Universal Credit and Pension Credit.

Check what you can access through a free online benefit calculator through a charity site such as turn2us.

What is the Priority Services Register?

The NAO found that public awareness of the Priority Services Register (PSR) is low.  

You can register for the free service to get extra advice and support when there’s an interruption to your electricity, gas or water supply, as well as tailored help with matters such as bills.  

It helps suppliers give care to customers who have extra communication, access or safety needs.

You can find and sign up to the relevant operator here.