Should We Ban Pre Payment Meters?
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Should pre payment meters for Gas and Electric be banned?
Millions of people face being cut off this Winter because they can't afford the top ups.
I personally think more people should be on pre-payment meters so they can control their spending on energy. People that just build up debts and expect others to pay for them is unacceptable in my opinion. If you can't pay your energy bills then your home should be forced to have a pre-payment meter or your services cut off. I'm not rich and limit my energy to what I can afford. I wear extra clothes and think about how to save money with regard energy. I would expect anyone else to do the same with a budget to work to. A pre-payment meter is the ideal way of people limiting their energy use to what they can afford. Just using energy you can't afford to pay for is theft. There are people who couldn't afford their rent who are homeless etc which is horrible but just the reality now for 10s of thousands of people. Many would love to have their own home even without heating.
Leannexxx Surely you realise that would mean a huge amount of unpaid energy bills so what would happen then? The whole point of pre-payment meters is preventing people from building up bills they can't pay. What is the alternative solution to pre-payment meters which actually works?
Leannexxx So what happens to those people who have unpaid energy bills? They get prosecuted and get a bad credit rating? A bad credit rating means they pay higher interest rates throughout their life unless that bad credit rating is reversed. Surely living within your means is the best approach not just for yourself but society in general.
BonzoBanana well maybe this country should start looking after their own instead of giving all the money away and we wouldn't be in this debt people watch their budgets and still struggle because of extra charges you get on the pre pay meters on the monthly bills you don't get the extra charge its all wrong and some people who not in debt moved into a properties that already have them in and can't change them if they wanted to its £500 thats a joke
jms19 it's not justified it's like they have taken more money from the people who are struggling for years it's been going on I tried to get my dad on monthly they said to change it will cost him £500 even tho hes not in debt with his gas or electric the pre pay meter was in the house when we moved in 27 years ago he wont pay to change it out of principal
Everyone but people with pre-payment meters will have to pay extra on their energy bills for unpaid energy debt.
So you will be pleased to know those who pay their energy costs by direct debit or standing order will be subsidising those with pre-payment meters.
When I moved into my house it had a pre-payment meter and it was changed to a normal meter for free at the time but that was back in 2006. I've no idea how that works today. However I had to load up credit at my local one stop store for a the time before the meter was changed which admittedly was really annoying. Obviously pre-payment is a more expensive way of charging for energy but then its a mechanism for those with less money to control how they spend with regards energy but I believe its still subsidised by other energy users as they don't pay the full cost even before that new £16 charge.
There are lots of things where poorer people pay more sadly. If you live in a poor area with high crime both home and car insurance is more expensive and if you have a bad credit history then borrowing is more expensive. Poorer people often end up paying a higher percentage of their money on interest payments. Pre-payment meters are a trivial extra cost compared to those extra costs.
BonzoBanana it's not some pay extra because of debt and there's still a charge for the meter itself there ripping people off it's that simple you have a meter in? Do you get extra charge for having that? No you don't the companies are living the high life on the money they take from the poor
There are some people who benefit topping up the payment cards rather than having one large bill.
I got behind on my gas bill whilst my benefits were being sorted - so have a gas pre-payment meter in. I pay more for my gas than I would if I could go back on direct debit and even though the debt is cleared I cant go back on direct debit. To me it feels like ‘oh, we know you don’t have much money so we will charge you extra’.
Yeah - I do get cold - which obviously isn’t healthy. I like having a pre payment meter now - I know exactly where I am with it. I just think paying more shouldn’t be allowed.
suevernon1968 totally agree with you on this that money for the extra charge shouldn't be happening you could use that for extra gas my dad have a big blanket he uses every night so he doesn't have to use his gas
Leannexxx yeah - I would be happier if i was paying the same as others - but its not a fight that can be won. if I’m not actually going to leave the house I will keep my pj’s and dressing gown on. I cant see the point in getting cold to get changed- go nowhere - then just change back again to go to bed.
Leannexxx I’m very lucky to still have that old fashioned corner shop that you will see quite a lot of us with big fluffy dressing gowns on when its chilly lol
suevernon1968 hahaha I've not done that 
but once I'm home it's pj and housecoat time
suevernon1968 To be perfectly honest I don't think people with pre-payment meters should pay more but I do think pre-payment meters should be the only option for those who don't pay their bills when they are direct debit and standing orders. People with very large homes who use excessive energy should pay a higher rate. We should be motivated to use less energy so a certain amount should be allowed for both gas and electricity at a lowish rate for everyone and then a higher rate kicks in and those with pre-payment meters should of course also get that low rate. Many don't like that because those with EV's would pay a lot more for their energy but they could still offer overnight economy rates. Many people who pay a standing rate for gas and electricty but don't actually use much gas and electricity are unfairly charged in my opinion. Far better to have no standing charge and higher costs for high use in my opinion which would reduce energy costs for a lot of poorer people not just pre-payment meter users.
No I don't think they should be banned, as it helps some people to budget and control their spending. Prices should however not be anymore than standard tariffs .
Well if they ban prepayment metres because they can't top up how will they pay their quarterly bill?? We have prepayment meters through choice, pay as you go so we don't get a massive bill
martinlufc5637 it's not about banning them problem is there shouldn't be a extra charge on them as most say people are on them so they know what there up to so why take it off the poor? They charge £500 to take a pre payment out knowing full well people are not gonna pay that they make more money ripping people off on them
Leannexxx we don't pay any extra charges, utilita don't charge standing charges on their prepayment meters, that's why we went with them
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