Eight energy suppliers have met Ofgem's strict criteria to restart involuntary prepayment meter installations, according to consumer advice published by Ofgem, Energy UK and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. The document states that "From January 2024, EDF, Octopus, Scottish Power, Tru Energy, E.ON, Utility Warehouse, Utilita and Ovo Energy have met Ofgem's strict criteria"1. The practice had been suspended under a moratorium in place from February 20232.
The restart followed a voluntary ban agreed by suppliers in February 2023, when "Energy suppliers agreed to stop force-fitting prepayment meters or switching smart meters to prepayment mode without consent"1. Ofgem later made the rules part of licence conditions from 1 October 20233. Before restarting, suppliers had to meet conditions including an internal audit to identify wrongfully installed meters, an independent assessment of readiness, and board attestation, with regular monitoring data provided to the regulator2.
The rules require at least 10 attempts to contact a customer and a site welfare visit before installation2. Certain households fall into a "do not install" category, including those needing continuous supply for health reasons, households with an occupant aged 75 or over without support in the house, households with children under 2, and residents with severe health issues such as terminal illness or a medical dependency on a warm home2. Suppliers must also assess suitability where there are children aged 5 and under, serious medical or mental health conditions, or temporary situations such as pregnancy or bereavement2.
"It is outrageous that energy firms are seeking to use the courts to force people onto prepayment meters in the middle of winter. These meters have the potential to leave them without heating in the middle of winter."
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition said it had "grave concerns about the processes energy firms have in place for assessing vulnerabilities"2. It also stated that "as many as 630,000 households could have been forced onto a PPM without their express consent", equivalent to 14% of the 4.5m prepayment households, while 86% did choose to be on a prepayment meter3. The coalition reported that 187,000 applications were made by energy firms in the first six months of 2022 and 500,000 since the end of Covid lockdown, and that some courts were approving 500 warrants in under four minutes3.
From 1 April 2024, standing charges for prepayment meters were reduced to the level of direct debit under the price cap1. Consumer Scotland reported that "starting in January 2024, Ofgem started to allow suppliers to re-engage in the practice of putting indebted consumers onto prepayment meters without permission, under tightly regulated circumstances"5. Its 2025 tracker found that 34% of respondents in energy debt or arrears reported being put on a prepayment meter due to their debt, up from 16% the previous year5.
Why it matters for households
A prepayment meter means paying for energy before use. If a household cannot top up, supply can run out and the home self-disconnects. Prepayment users generally still pay daily standing charges even after falling into debt and self-disconnecting, and are often required to repay accrued debt before regaining supply3. The rules on forced prepayment meter installation set out which households suppliers must not place on a meter and which require an assessment first. The wider prepayment and vulnerable customer rules govern how suppliers must treat customers in debt, including the requirement to offer an affordable repayment plan, benefit deductions or a prepayment meter, with the choice left to the customer4. For a household's energy independence, an involuntary meter shifts control over when and how energy is bought, and a self-disconnection removes supply entirely.
What happens next
The legacy industry-run service supporting Radio Teleswitch (RTS) meters is being phased out and is planned to end 30 June 20251. The End Fuel Poverty Coalition has written to the Government and Ofgem demanding an immediate new pause on forced prepayment meter installations until further conditions are met3.
Sources5 cited
- Energy consumer advice for Autumn/ Winter 2022 England and Wales, ofgem.gov.uk
- Ofgem allows energy firms to force fit prepayment meters, endfuelpoverty.org.uk
- The forced pre-payment meters scandal - End Fuel Poverty Coalition, endfuelpoverty.org.uk
- Consumer Rights Energy - Understand Your Rights for Support, changeworks.org.uk
- Insights from the 2025 Energy Affordability Tracker (HTML) | Consumer Scotland, consumer.scot