benefit and wage payments. what day do you get paid? some are desperate. please don t be frightened. we had a customer that found us a couple of weeks ago that had to sell all their belongings in order to be able to heat or eat. april s crippling rising bills has been too much for some, and there is worse to come when bills rise again in october. we were already seeing people in financial stress during this last winter. it was a relatively mild winter. you know, 54% price increase now, another 20% in october, it s going to be. i think one of my industry colleagues described it as being horrific. i think that s probably a fair statement. anything on standby will actually use up your credit. the calls being taken behind me are from the front line of the cost of living crisis, people unable to heat their homes, theirfood or both. and although energy prices are the biggest shock to household incomes, it s not the only one. food prices are rising, petrol and diesel have set records in recen
food prices are rising, petrol and diesel have set records in recent weeks, and national insurance went up in april, reducing take home pay. the biggest cost of living squeeze in 70 years got under way in earnest in april, and it s affecting millions of people. in the streets of eastleigh, everyone was feeling it and having to make changes. everything s gone up gas, electric, council tax went up. i didn t get a pay rise this year. the tax on national insurance has all changed as well. if i get the cooker on or whatever, i make sure the heating s off because i think, well, while i m cooking, i m warm enough. things like holidays and like that- are out of the question, days out and things - because it s more important. we ve got to eat and heat our house and everything. - citizens advice saw an eightfold increase in calls from prepayment metre customers this april. so far this year, we ve already helped as many people as we did in the whole of 2021 with not being able to afford to keep