debt collectors working for british gas secretly filmed about to break into the home of a single father with young children to fit a prepayment meter. it is not an isolated case and has prompted the industry regulator 0fgem to ask all energy companies to suspend the practice. but the business secretary is going further. grant shapps says. grant shapps is demanding to know by tuesday what action firms are going to take to compensate customers affected, and he wants a new customer hotline set up to allow households to tell their own stories to the regulator. 0ne fuel poverty charity says change is needed. it is clear the energy companies have not been following the rules, the energy regulator has not been
energy companies firmly under the spotlight for prepayment meters. an undercover reporter from the times showed debt collectors working for british gas, breaking into the home of a single father with young children, to fit the device. the times found evidence of other stories like this, too. energy suppliers can legally force fit prepayment meters. it should be a last resort if people are in arrears and vulnerable customers should not be switched. every day last year over 1,000 warrants of entry were granted to energy companies, mainly in order to forcibly install prepayment meters. energy companies identify customers who are in arrears, then their agents apply for a warrant by telephone. they send in large spreadsheets with between 100 to 1,000 cases. according to evidence from pilot, the hearings will sign off, issue and send all the electronic warrants in a maximum of 15 minutes. this new advice to all magistrates, obtained by the bbc, reflects internal disquiet that the process had
motivated by intentions. the bbc has learnt that courts were given advice suggesting warrants for the forced installation of pre payment meters in people s homes could be waved through. more than 1,000 warrants a day were approved by magistrates last year, as the cost of living crisis put many customers into arrears. earlier this week the regulator 0fgem asked firms to suspend the compulsory installation of the devices after a times investigation showed british gas subcontractors breaking into the homes of vulnerable people. our business correspondent noor nanji has the details. this was the footage that thrust energy companies firmly under the spotlight for prepayment meters. an undercover reporter from the times showed debt collectors working for british gas, breaking into the home of a single father with young children, to fit the device. the times found evidence of other stories like this, too.
also been helping out not farfrom here, there is a tennis club where volunteers have been turning up all day to get maps to do their bit to look for nicola bulley. and the searches are likely to continue for the rest of the weekend. the bbc has learnt that courts were given advice suggesting warrants for the forced installation of pre payment metres in people s homes in the uk could be waved through. more than 1,000 warrants a day were approved by magistrates last year, as the cost of living crisis put many customers into arrears. earlier this week, the regulator 0fgem asked firms to suspend the compulsory installation of the devices after a times investigation showed british gas subcontractors breaking into the homes of vulnerable people. our business correspondent noor nanji has the details. this was the footage that thrust energy companies firmly under the spotlight. an undercover reporter from the times showed debt collectors working for british gas, breaking into the home of a
it also quotes her sister who said people don tjust vanish into thin air. the times follows up on its investigation which found that debt collectors for british gas had broken into vulnerable people s homes to fit prepayment meters. british gas has now been banned from force fitting them to protect vulnerable customers. the uk is set to enter recession this year but it will be shorter and less severe than previously thought, according to the bank of england. the daily telegraph leads with this but the paper also reports that one of the causes, is that the country s workforce is shrinking and has been permanently damaged by the pandemic. and spare a thought for the parents of six year old mason stonehouse from michigan. he managed to run up a takeaway bill of more than £800, or $1,000, on his dad s phone, ordering everything from prawns to pizzas. you can watch the full interview with mason and his exasperated parents on the bbc news website. a quick look at the inside pages,