Wednesday 27th of January 2010
Years of cheap energy may have left British consumers poorly prepared for the debt management demands posed by their utility bills.
In the recent cold snap, you could be forgiven for turning up your heating by a few degrees.
But Lesley Tudor-Snodin, spokeswoman for National Energy Action, warns that the relatively cheap energy of recent years may have left many people unable to see where to make savings.
"There are several generations of people who will struggle to make these changes as they are just not used to it," she says.
Her comments follow the publication of an Ofgem report showing an increase in the number of energy customers encountering difficulties with their debt management.
In the third quarter of 2009, 13 per cent more people entered debt arrangements with their utility providers in order to tackle their bills.
With the wintry weather that has hit the country since then, the figure may rise further in the weeks to come as more households face unwelcome bills for heating their home to a comfortable degree.
By Ashley Littley
