Fuel Poverty Action (FPA) is urging the government to bring forward planned consumer protections for the customers of heat networks this winter.
Earlier this year the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) consulted on a regulatory framework for heat networks, including consumer protections.
In a letter to energy minister Kwasi Kwarteng the charity urges the government to bring forward arrangements for compensation when district heating breaks down and to upgrade networks which repeatedly fail, on an emergency basis.
The letter points to the current lack of regulation of the industry and that most heat network users are not entitled to compensation should they lose supply.
“This is in sharp contrast to compensation and alternative heating sources supplied in the case of a gas outage. A minority of district heating users, those residents on schemes that are members of the Heat Trust schemes, can get compensation, but even then only after a 24 hours outage”, it said.
Heat Trust covers just 10 per cent of the market, meaning the vast majority of customers lack basic support.
FPA further highlights the impact of the pandemic, warning that those who have experienced a heat network outage have previously used libraries to keep warm or showered at the local gym. This will be impossible if lockdown restrictions continue throughout the winter.
It believes repeated payments to thousands of residents are not a lasting solution and instead calls for an emergency fund to prevent breakdowns in a limited number of networks.
At the start of the pandemic the government agreed a series of measures with the energy industry designed to ensure gas and electricity customers, particularly those who are vulnerable, are kept on supply through the crisis.
Ruth London of FPA said: “This winter, the dangers are worse than ever. Many people are working at home, many have lost their income. Even in a normal year, it can be too expensive to plug in an electric heater or to use an immersion heater for hot water.”
She added: “The government has chosen to commit to heat networks infrastructure as a ‘no regrets’ way forward to decarbonising heat. It should now commit to insisting that people are made safe from system failures. And its green recovery package should include loans, where needed, to bring existing heat networks up to a standard which does not imperil the health of the people who use it.
“We are asking the government to include such provision in funding for a green recovery from Covid-19.”
David Watson, managing director of Heat Trust, said: “As the independent consumer champion for those living and working on heat networks, we believe that when things go wrong customers have a right to expect that they are put right as soon as possible and to receive compensation for any loss.
“Those heat network suppliers who have signed up to our scheme are committing to doing just that on the sites registered with us. Whilst this is welcome, our scheme covers just 10 per cent of the market today. That means that the majority of customers lack even this basic support.”