Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he has met representatives of energy providers to discuss the steps they are taking to guarantee the equitable treatment of customers with (a) learning and (b) physical disabilities.

Ministers in the Department regularly meet with energy providers to discuss a range of issues, including support for vulnerable energy consumers.

Government, and the energy Regulator Ofgem, has a duty to protect the interests of electricity and gas consumers and to have specific regard to the interests of vulnerable consumers, including individuals who are disabled or chronically sick.

Ofgem Supply Licence Conditions require energy companies to treat all customers fairly, including customers in a vulnerable situation. Ofgem also requires energy companies to maintain a Priority Services Register of vulnerable customers, including people with certain mental health conditions which impact their understanding of a bill. Customers on a Priority Service Register are offered a range of services relating to safety, access and communication free of charge. Full details of who is eligible and the support that can be accessed is available online at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/consumers/household-gas-and-electricity-guide/extra-help-energy-services/priority-services-register

Ofgem monitors energy company performance with their requirements through their Social Obligations Reporting. The latest report can be found online at: https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/system/files/docs/2019/09/vulnerable_consumers_in_the_energy_market_2019_final.pdf.