Age UK demands immediate government action to prevent millions more from falling into fuel poverty.

With experts predicting that energy bills could rise by up to 50 per cent this spring – adding around £600 to the average annual bill – Age UK is warning that this unprecedented increase could trigger a national emergency for millions of older people.

The charity has written to the Secretaries of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng MP) and for Work and Pensions (Rt Hon Thérèse Coffey MP), calling for immediate action to protect vulnerable older people from the cold this winter. This is the second letter from the Charity in as many months urging Ministers to take decisive action on energy bills to mitigate the potentially devastating impact of the escalating crisis, which will be nothing short of catastrophic for many older people without intervention. In addition, the letter underscores the need for longer-term thinking about how older people with the least ability to pay can be protected from energy price rises in the future.

Rising inflation is already eating into the pensions of swathes of older people, but the charity is warning that the unprecedented hike in wholesale energy prices will be totally unmanageable for those living on low fixed incomes – many of whom have few, if any, savings to fall back on. The latest government figures show that around 930,000 pensioners (eight per cent) say they could not afford an unexpected bill of £200. And given that older people are typically at home more than younger age groups and feel the cold to a much greater extent, the prediction of a bill increase of around £600 – the equivalent of spending an extra £1 in every £15 of the full new State Pension on energy – is likely to be a significant underestimation for many.

Many older people are already putting their health at risk by rationing their food and heating to keep their bills down. In recent months, the charity has heard from thousands of older people who are already feeling the pinch and rationing their energy use as well as other essentials, including food. For example, older people who are too worried to use their oven and are living on soup and sandwiches instead; showering only every two days rather than daily; and constantly watching their smart meter and turning their heating off once their daily spending exceeds the meagre limit they have set.

Financial support for older people during the colder months has remained broadly unchanged for years and is nowhere near enough to match the scale of the current problem. In its letter to Ministers, sent earlier this week, the charity urges them to give older people the confidence to keep their heating switched on this winter, helping them to stay warm and well, at a time when we are still in a pandemic. This means providing strong assurances – and a financial package to back it up – so that people can keep their heating on, safe in the knowledge that they won’t have to face an extortionate and unaffordable bill in the spring.

Age UK believes that there are many ways the Government could fund vital support to see older people through this crisis. It says that the following two policy recommendations could encourage older people to keep their heating on this winter without worry.

  • Cut the 5% rate of VAT from all household's energy bills from April until at least the end of 2022. If as expected, average bills rise to around £2,000, this would save a household just under £100. Energy suppliers must pass on these savings to their customers.

  • Provide additional support (payments of up to £500) to older people on the lowest incomes. Using the eligibility criteria for the Cold Weather Payments would help guarantee automatic support to some of the homes that most need the help with their energy bills.