Over 350,000 smart meters were remotely switched to repay debt between 2017 and 2023, The Telegraph can reveal.
It comes as Ofgem, the energy regulator, is set to bring in new rules setting a “minimum standard” that limits when firms can forcibly change a customer’s tariff. Campaigners are also calling on the Government to outlaw the practice altogether.
The number of remote switches rose fivefold in the five years to 2021, but dropped 61pc in 2022 to 58,977 from over 152,000 the year before, according to official figures, as the Government stepped in to shield consumers from surging costs by raising the energy price cap and introducing the Energy Price Guarantee.
Britain’s smart meter rollout has been billed as a cost-saver for households by its supporters, but has saddled billpayers with three million “dumb” devices that can no longer submit automatic readings to suppliers.
Energy providers have faced criticism for using smart meters to
remotely force indebted customers onto more costly prepayment meters
without a warrant, which is required to enter a home and manually
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