British Gas to pay £20m to settle meter scandal

British Gas will pay millions of pounds to settle an investigation into the forced installation of prepayment meters, energy regulator Ofgem said Friday.

The company has agreed to pay £20 million into Ofgem's voluntary redress fund and write off up to £70 million of debt owed by "vulnerable" customers such as low-income households, the disabled or elderly, or those in rural areas.

Ofgem tightened the rules around the controversial practice after reports emerged in 2023 that British Gas contractors sent debt collectors to break into homes and force-fit prepayment meters (PPMs).

They charge more than standard devices and let contractors cut off supplies to customers in arrears, raising concerns that vulnerable customers were being targeted.

"British Gas fell short in its treatment of an unacceptable number of vulnerable customers who had a PPM installed without consent," Ofgem chief executive Tim Jarvis said in a statement.

The regulator said British Gas had not carried out any forcible meter installations since February 2023.

"What happened should never have happened, and I am sorry to the prepayment customers who were affected," said Chris O'Shea, chief executive of Centrica, which owns British Gas.