The Budget - Prepayment Energy Meter Bills To Be Cut By £45

15th March 2023

More than four million struggling households are set to save £45 a year on energy bills from 1 July 2023.

This will happen by bringing prepayment energy charges in line with customers who pay by direct debit.

Households which have prepayment meters are typically vulnerable or on low incomes.

But they pay more because energy firms pass on the costs of managing the meters.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who is expected to announce the plan in his Spring Budget on Wednesday, said it was "clearly unfair that those on prepayment meters pay more than others".

The extra charges struggling households would have paid will instead be met under the government-funded Energy Price Guarantee at a cost of £200m.

Regulator Ofgem will report on how to permanently end the "prepayment penalty" when that government support ends in April 2024, the Treasury said.