How do I get help when I am behind on energy payments?

Energy debt is a priority debt — not because it is morally different, but because the enforcement routes attached to it are more serious than for, say, a catalogue account. That makes early contact genuinely worth more here than almost anywhere else. Suppliers have regulatory duties towards customers in difficulty, and those duties are only triggered when they know.

Safety

Step by step

1. Contact the supplier before missing more payments.Say plainly that you are in financial difficulty and cannot maintain the current amount. That phrase engages their obligations under Ofgem's rules in Great Britain, or the Utility Regulator's in Northern Ireland.
2. Work out what you can genuinely afford first.List income and essential outgoings so you can propose a figure. A plan built on a number you cannot meet fails within two months and damages your position.
3. Ask for an affordable payment arrangement.Suppliers are expected to take your ability to pay into account, not simply divide the debt by twelve. Put your proposed figure to them in writing.
4. Ask about hardship and trust funds.Several suppliers run charitable trusts that can write off part of a debt. They are underused, applications are free, and you can usually apply even if you are not a customer of that supplier's own scheme.
5. Join the Priority Services Register.It is free and it changes how you are treated — including advance notice of interruptions and, for some households, protections around meter changes.
6. Check what support schemes you may qualify for.Schemes such as the Warm Home Discount exist and their eligibility rules and amounts change. Check the current position on GOV.UK and with your supplier rather than relying on last year's information.
7. Get free debt advice.Citizens Advice, StepChange, National Debtline and MoneyHelper are free and independent. Avoid anyone charging a fee to set up a plan — the free services do the same work.
8. Deal with priority debts in the right order.Energy, rent, mortgage and council tax or rates come before credit cards and loans, because the consequences of not paying them are more severe.
9. Understand what a supplier can and cannot do.There are rules restricting disconnection and rules about moving a customer to a prepayment meter, including protections for vulnerable households. Ask Citizens Advice about the current position if this is raised with you.
10. Keep a record of every contact.Dates, names, what was agreed. If you later need to complain to the Energy Ombudsman, that record is the case.

Tips

• Say the words 'I am in financial difficulty' explicitly. Suppliers have obligations that begin at that point, and hinting at it does not trigger them.
• Never pay a company that charges to negotiate with your creditors. The free services are better resourced and are regulated.
• Ask for the arrangement in writing, including what happens to the arrears and what your ongoing payment covers.

Common mistakes

• Avoiding contact until enforcement starts — Every protection and every flexible option depends on the supplier knowing. Silence is read as refusal to pay and closes the helpful routes.
• Agreeing to a plan you cannot meet — A broken arrangement is treated worse than an honest lower offer, and it makes the next negotiation harder.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask