Ofgem introduced stringent new rules for the installation of prepayment meters in 2023, according to the final report of the Ofgem Review published by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero1. The report states that the rules followed supplier failures to follow the rules on forced installation1.
The review, described in its ministerial foreword as the first comprehensive review in Ofgem's 25-year history, was begun in December 20241. Its final report was published on 22 April 20261. The report records the 2023 prepayment meter rules as one of the interventions Ofgem has made, alongside the introduction of the price cap in 2019, which it calls a significant intervention in the market1.
"While Ofgem introduced stringent new rules for the installation of prepayment meters in 2023"
The review sets out a programme of reform for the regulator. It says a new set of three equal principal objectives will be introduced, focusing on the interests of existing and future consumers, net zero and growth1. Ofgem's role in supporting growth was recognised through the addition of a growth duty in 20241. The report also states that the government will set strategic outcomes and priorities through a reformed, Ofgem-specific Strategy and Policy Statement, while Ofgem determines how to deliver within its remit1.
The report says the measures set out will give Ofgem new powers to enforce consumer law directly without going through the courts, hold executives individually accountable in cases of wrongdoing, and limit bonuses if rules are broken1. It also describes the review as the first step in giving Ofgem the power to regulate parts of the energy sector, such as heating oil, which it says have lacked proper consumer protection1.
The report does not set out the detailed content of the 2023 prepayment meter rules, the suppliers involved in the failures, or the dates on which individual measures took effect. Those details have not been reported in this document1.
Why it matters for households
Prepayment meters are the mechanism by which a household pays for energy in advance, and the point at which a supplier can move a customer onto one without agreement is the point at which a home's energy supply becomes most exposed to debt and disconnection risk. The 2023 rules sit within that boundary: they govern how and when a supplier may install a prepayment meter, including in cases where the customer has not asked for one1. For a household already managing arrears, the practical effect of the rules is to determine whether a meter change can happen at all, and under what conditions.
The wider review matters because it changes the regulator's stated priorities and its enforcement tools. A regulator with three equal principal objectives covering consumers, net zero and growth is being asked to weigh household interests alongside decarbonisation and economic aims1. The proposed powers to enforce consumer law directly, to hold executives accountable and to limit bonuses are enforcement mechanisms; their relevance to a household lies in how quickly and how firmly a supplier can be held to account when something goes wrong1. The extension of regulation to areas such as heating oil would bring a group of households that have not had the same consumer protections into a regulated framework1.
What happens next
The report says the government looks forward to working with Ofgem, industry and others to implement the reforms, and that DESNZ and Ofgem will work with the National Energy System Operator and stakeholders to clarify roles across the three organisations1. A full table of actions is set out in Annex B of the report1. No implementation timetable for the individual measures has been reported in the document1.