To not want a prepayment meter

[Cocoloco889]

Name change due to shame. I'm just looking for advice please.
I have a back injury from in a car crash a few years ago and received compensation and lived off that for a while. However I'm now on universal credit and after rent I have £500 left. I can afford food and a few other minor bills and that is all.
I'm in £2k debt to scottish power and they have written to me saying they are applying to install a prepayment meter.
I have no idea what I'm going to do, I won't be able to top it up. I'm going out of my mind with worry, I can barely buy food this week. I've got £9 to last me until the 30th and its going to be worse with gas and electric to pay for too. I realise there are a lot of people worse off than me and I've tried everything I can to find work, but with my back injury its proving quite difficult

Are you on the priority services register? Are SP aware that you are disabled? OFGEM sets out criteria that must be met for forced installation of prepayment meters, so ask them about that.

Have you looked into any other benefits you can claim? PIP maybe?

I'm not, but it is mentioned on the letter. But it didn't make much sense, I looked on the website and thought it was about being notified of supply delays.

@dementedpixie I've applied but no decision yet 😏

It's generally for interruptions in supply so they will get you back on supply quickly or offer extra assistance, but being on it is an indication to supplier that you may be vulnerable. Does your supplier know you're disabled?

Having no heat isn't the end of the world. There's lots you can do to keep warm without paying stuipid prices to the utility companies.

I don’t understand your post about not being able to pay for gas and electricity- are you expecting Scottish Power to just give it to you for free?? No wonder they want to put a prepayment meter in

I suggest you contact one of the debt charities for help with your budgeting

No? I know some people get reduced rates. There's no amount of budgeting to make £500 stretch a whole month, with normal bills and food.

Yeah we usually have hot water bottles to keep warm etc. But we still need hot water and electricity etc. Since I've fallen behind on the bills I have cut back massively. But I was hoping fuel prices would drop back down to what they were 18 months ago.

You have my sympathy. It's tough to survive on UC. I don't think a lot of people realise that it really isn't enough to live on at all, particularly in the last two years.

This is a bit cheeky, but I'd see if you can move supplier. Those prepayment meters are absolute bullshit with the extra amount they charge. And I imagine with an injury, you really don't need the extra faff. I'd do as much as possible to avoid it.

I got out of some energy debt a couple of years back by switching supplier when I had money owing. Naughty, but I'm not obliged to be their customer. I then got a direct debit I could afford somewhere else and offered the previous supplier the lowest payment a month I could get away with. So I'm paying it off at a very reasonable rate but they're not stressed about it because it isn't accumulating.

Have a look here: https://www.scottishpower.co.uk/support-centre/help-paying-your-bill/hardship-fund

I have no idea how things work with Scottish Power but often an eligibility criteria for a hardship fund is to prove that you are making regular payments, even if a negligible token amount of a few points. It’s worth making some payments and also applying to see if you can get a grant towards the debt.

From a longer term perspective, you will need to pay for the energy that you use to make sure you don’t get back into this situation.

Not when you struggle to move and winter hits disabled and elderly need heating.

My advice would be to make contact and explain to them that disability would make it unsafe and extremely difficult for you to top up a pre payment meter, whilst simultaneously organizing for part of your benefits to be paid direct to them. The combination should save you from a prepayment meter, which is to be avoided when in crap as it keeps you there longer. Communication with them is key to staying in control of things.

You currently have £150 pw to live off and may have to budget further, and this month at least, possibly look at food bank referral. It isn't great, but needs must when the devil drives. I'm veggie which helps considerably, but eat well enough on low amounts when I need to.

You can get low income water bills if you can prove your income, which might help things stretch.
You want to contact Sigma Connected Support for an application for Scottish Powers hardship fund, if you hope to get some of it written off, but I think you may have to do that through Step Change or Citizens advice.
Also if you're on IS or HB you can try applying for warm home grant later in the year.

IntrepidCat has found what you need while I was typing about it.

Not sure what you expect people to say @Cocoloco889

You owe the money, your energy company have the right to have that money back. And if installing a prepayment meter is how they get it, then so be it. You're going to have to suck it up. Everyone else has to. Many people struggle financially, not just you.

Having a back injury some time ago is not going to stop you from topping up a prepayment meter either (as someone suggested!)

It's not impossible if there's just 1 of u tbh it just takes budgeting and cooking for yourself

Our bills including Netflix and TV licence which I deem unnecessary but partner wants lol are 120 gas and electric (massive credit as I try to cover spare for winter) 185 council tax 23 Internet 45 water 15 council tax 15 TV license 10 Netflix then food shop just under 200 for both of us (includes meat sirloin steak every now and then but no booze so not bad from Lidl... don't have time to cook everything I'd like as work 65h weeks but it's possible

So 600pm for 2 people all in (by time have single persons council tax 25% off no TV license or Netflix I could be under 500

But you need a payment plan else will be enforced as that's a lot if debt

Check you're on max benefits/rent support etc too

@TonyeKnausgaard

This is a bit cheeky, but I'd see if you can move supplier. Those prepayment meters are absolute bullshit with the extra amount they charge.

Fake news. Prepayment meters do not 'cost extra.' Used to. Do not now.

And OP cannot change suppliers when she owes £2000 to her current supplier! What planet are you living on?!

We had some help from eon next when we got into arrears. They wiped the debt after a couple of months and set up a D/D that we HAD to stick to to cover bills going forward which we've managed to.

We had issues with OH being off work ill but not ill enough to be eligible for PIP causing us to get so far behind we couldn't catch back up again. It was hard to make the call but they were helpful. I had to provide all outgoings and they came up with the plan.

It's worth a shot to see if they do anything to support your situation. www.scottishpower.co.uk/support-centre/help-paying-your-bill/hardship-fund

@EbonyRaven If the Op can't get out and about for pre payment cards because of it, it will.

I'm self employed, wheelchair disabled, and life is often difficult.
I can't even reach my electricity meter to read it, let alone top it up if I was on prepayment. They wont move it for me even in exchange for accepting a smart meter. Others in our flats have to use step ladders to top up.

I'm not entitled to most of the schemes because I work, but there are sensible ways to sort ones debts out, and less sensible ones.

I had a massive technical debt when my gas meter (which I can reach) massively malfunctioned when I'd been in hospital creating a bill no one could have racked up, and I chose to have the supply disconnected while I fought it.
The advice to do that immediately turned out to be critical in me being able to prove the apparently against the odds malfunction.

I was then thrown into actual debt suddenly when DWP informed me they had made a mistake, but I still had to pay everything back, even though it was actually half the amount I should have been receiving.

It was a horrible place to be, and I'm grateful for the advice people gave me on how to navigate my situation so I could pay everything I actually owed, without ending up with things like prepayment meters, and remain in control of my life.

@Elleherd You can top up online.

HTH.

I've had to have my coccyx removed and have to sleep downstairs as I can't even get up them. You are beyond rude and condescending, I won't be reading further comments from you thanks.

Make sure they do you smart meters which can be topped up online

Yes with the smart meter you can top up online.
few years ago I had £800 in debt with southern electric and I was forced to change my meter into prepaid one and they used to deduct from the top up until the debt was paid off.

Poster isn't being rude or condescending.

Your posts imply that Scottish power and therefore other customers should fund you. Unfortunately that isn't going to happen. You have to find a way.

Prepayment meters can be topped up online so your arguments flawed.

You have racked up a lot of debt with them, if you don't comply they will take you to court for the money

Useful for me to update my knowledge, people here use cards they have to buy.

But I'd still look to other ways of sorting things out and staying in control of situations, especially if I was on UC and could have it garnished as an alternative.

If you cannot safely access your meters let them know as this may stop the switch.OFGEM have rules about this and you must be able to access them 24/7 and be able to get to shops to top-up. Do you have a payment arrangement with them? If not now is the time to make one to at least pay your usage and something towards the debt. And yes make sure they have your priority service register up to date. If they do fit one and you are unable to top it up they may be able to loan you credit. Saying that its important you deal with this rather than falling further in to debt.

Lol I haven't suggested that. I just said I don't want a pre payment meter, as it means I'll have to find the money upfront every day/week. And I had no argument. They said me having a bad back isn't going to stop me topping up a prepayment meter, when they have no idea of my medical condition and there are medical exemptions that stop a pre payment meter being fitted.