Almost a quarter of gas customers in arrears on their bills

Despite the recent fall in energy prices over the past year, costs remain high. Indeed gas prices are still close to double the level they were at only a few years ago.

So it's unsurprising that some households are struggling to stay on top of their bills.  

The latest report from the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) on arrears and disconnections in the energy sector sheds some light on how people are coping. 

Looking at the numbers 

According to the CRU, in December 268,555 households were behind on their electricity bills. 

This represents 12% of all households and is a big increase of almost 35,000 compared to November.

In recent years the level of electricity arrears has fluctuated widely based around the timing of the payment of energy credits.

Another €125 credit was paid to all households in November, which helped arrears numbers drop significantly for that month. But now they've shot back up again.  

The average value of electricity arrears is €194.

For gas customers, the situation is worse. Almost 164,000 are behind on the bills - the highest level in four months. And this equates to 24% of all gas customers.  

The energy crisis has clearly taken a toll on some households budgets. As recently as 2020, 'only' 109,000 were behind on their gas bills. 

The average value of gas arrears is €423.

Disconnections 

The latest CRU report also looks at disconnections.

Over the past few years there has been a ban on energy disconnections for the non-payment of bills during the winter months. There was also a ban during the Covid lockdowns.

While the winter ban is still in place, the disconnection moratorium period has been shortened considerably in recent years and now only lasts a few weeks.

Last year, 1,745 electricity customers were disconnected, a near 68% jump compared to the year before. But this is still well below pre-Covid levels and only represents around 0.08% of all households. 

Gas disconnections also rose to their highest level since 2019, equating to around 0.27% of all gas customers. 

Avoiding arrears and disconnections

There are a number of supports available to help you manage your energy bills and avoid going into long-term arrears and then being disconnected.

But really the most important thing is to engage with your supplier. 

Energy suppliers offer a range of supports to help customers who are having trouble paying their bills. And by law, no supplier is allowed disconnect a customer as long as they're constructively engaging with their supplier. The last thing a supplier wants to do is disconnect a household and this is only ever carried out as a last resort.

You should also check what social welfare support you may be entitled to such as the winter fuel allowance or the free electricity allowance. And charities like MABs and The Society Of St Vincent De Paul also provide great advice and support.

Those heavily in arrears probably won't be able to switch. But for those who can, it's highly recommend as savings of several hundred euro can be made. And of course you can switch energy provider in minutes right here on bonkers.ie.  

You can read more about the available supports here.