Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | JUNE 2021 | 29 Customers Talking Points… "Energy is an essential service – we all need it to live, work, and thrive. Without national coordination we risk a 'postcode lottery' in which some people pay more or miss out on programmes to improve their homes solely because of where they live." Dhara Vyas, head of future energy services at Citizens Advice "It's a huge achievement, not just to complete the migration in such a short time but also to achieve such a positive response from customers – because customers are what this move is all about." Eon CEO Michael Lewis, on moving two million residential and business customers from Npower to new retail brand Eon Next "There is no doubt how hard this past year has been and that the fi nancial and social impact of Covid-19 will be long felt by customers across society. By understanding people's needs and priorities through the pandemic we can make a positive diff erence for customers and communities." Interim Ofwat CEO David Black, launching the regulator's Listen Care Share Quote, unquote Where is the post- Covid wall of debt? T hroughout the pandemic there have been repeated warnings that the real impact on utilities was yet to come. Commentators reached for the the- saurus to nd new ways to metaphorise this looming cloud/tsunami/avalanche/ wall of debt. All eyes were on the eventual withdrawal of the furlough scheme and with every extension of this deadline came a reminder of the impact it would have. However, recent conversations with the industry and vulnerability experts have been peppered with signs of some (very) cautious optimism. These match the equally tentative ripples of optimism from economists as the UK has started to rebuild at a quicker-than-expected rate. The hospitality and (non-essential) retail sectors, which were hit hardest, have somehow survived and are now frantically attempting to get back to work. Even sad news is in some ways a good sign, such as the announcement by debt charity StepChange that it is cutting jobs because the expected surge in cases never materialised. In fact, the number of people supported by the charity in 2020 was down by a third on the previous year, with no sign that the situation will change in 2021. So, whisper it, were our worst fears unfounded? Has government support, the success on vaccines, the caution of the public and the resilience of business stemmed that ˆ ow of debt? Matt Cole, of the Fuel Bank Foundation, agrees the worst-case scenario has not transpired but warns against complacency. He says high numbers are still turning to the foundation for help and oŒ en these are people who have never found themselves in this situation before. He says: "I would still urge utilities to be ready for this winter, where we could still see a perfect storm of factors impacting on customers' ability to pay. We have to be alive to that very real prospect. There's a need for a heightened sense of preparedness." He believes utilities have played a vital role in miti- gating some of the worst nancial impacts of Covid but cautions "we can't go back to old ways of working". Several industry players have reassured me recently that this will not be the case. Covid was a wake-up call to ensure vulnerability strategies are t for purpose and can ˆ ex to identify and incorporate new de nitions of the term. James Wallin, digital editor Comment: The much anticipated debt wave never came, so does that mean we're in the clear? The news in numbers: Some key statistics from the latest Public Attitudes Tracker for Q1 2021 from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy: 62% Respondents aware of the con- cept of "net zero" – down from 76% for the previous quarter. 47% said they have a smarter meter installed. 40% were very (11%) or fairly (29%) worried about their energy bills. 72% trust their energy supplier to provide them with a bill which accurately reflects the energy they have used. 26% have switched energy supplier in the past year.

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