British Gas, E.ON and EDF Energy websites CRASH ahead of April gas price hike
British Gas, E.ON and EDF Energy websites CRASH as thousands of customers try to upload latest meter readings to avoid April price hike
Customers attempting to submit readings have been unable to access websitesThough the websites have remained up, customers have not been able to log-in Sites showed messages warning of ‘technical issues or essential maintenance’ It comes as Britons have been urged to submit a meter reading before April 1 Submitting ahead of price cap hike will help prevent overcharging, say experts
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British Gas, E.On Next and EDF Energy website pages have crashed today, as thousands of customers attempt to upload their latest meter readings ahead of April’s energy price hike.
Customers have struggled to access their online accounts this morning due to ‘technical issues’ and ‘essential maintenance’ across the three websites.
The issues appear to only be impacting the account log-in pages, with customers still able to access the rest of the sites.
SSE, which is part of the OVO family, and Scottish Power, owned by Spanish energy giant Iberdrola, have also both been impacted.
According to Downdetector, more than 160 people have reported having issues with the website since 9am, while the website’s landing page was replaced with an error code as of midday on Thursday.
Scottish Power said it was working to resolve an issue with its website and told customers they could submit meter reading via an automated telephone line instead.
MP Tom Tugendhat Tweeted about the technical issues today, saying: ‘Today’s the day to update your meter reading but EDF Energy and British Gas seem to both have their websites down for maintenance. I’ll take a photo of the reading and enter it later.’
Annual energy bills will soar by 54 per cent tomorrow, when regulator Ofgem raises the price cap for an average home to £1,971.
Sending a meter reading before the new costs come in means households will not be overcharged for energy they have already used.
That is because customers will have submitted a meter reading up to the price cap change on April 1 – preventing firms from charging energy used before the price cap rise at the new higher rate.
British Gas, E.On and EDF Energy website pages have crashed today, with thousands of customers trying to upload their latest meter readings ahead of April’s energy price hike
Customers have struggled to access their online accounts this morning due to ‘technical issues’ and ‘essential maintenance’ across the three websites
The issues appear to only be impacting the account log-in pages, with customers still able to access the rest of the sites
Downdetector shows how dozens of customers have complained at not being able to access the website since 8am this morning
According to Downdetector, more than 160 people have reported having issues with the SSE website since 9am, while the website’s landing page was replaced with an error code as of midday on Thursday
Scottish Power said it was working to resolve an issue with its website and told customers they could submit meter reading via an automated telephone line instead. Pictured: Dozens of people have reported issues with the ScottishPower website since 8am
MP Tom Tugendhat Tweeted about the technical issues today, saying: ‘Today’s the day to update your meter reading but EDF Energy and British Gas seem to both have their websites down for maintenance. I’ll take a photo of the reading and enter it later.’
British Gas, who are owned by energy giant Centrica, insist no customer ‘will be left out of pocket’ as a result of this system issue and that people can submit a dated image of their meter reading beyond today.
The firm has also sent out text messages to customers allowing them to message their meter readings without having to log into their accounts.
A message on the British Gas website told customers it was facing ‘some technical issues we’re trying to resolve as quickly as possible’.
A spokesperson for EDF Energy told MailOnline: ‘We are aware of technical issues affecting our website and app when customers are trying to submit meter readings.
‘We’re working hard to try and resolve this and would encourage customers to try again later. We’re sorry about the inconvenience this is causing’
A spokesman for Energy UK, the trade association for the industry, said: ‘We’re aware that some suppliers are experiencing issues with their websites due to the volume of customers submitting meter readings.
‘Suppliers do offer alternative ways of doing this such as through automated phone lines and apps so we’d recommend customers try those. Customers with smart meters do not need to worry as their readings are automatically sent to their supplier.’
From April, the cap on the most widely used tariffs imposed by Britain’s energy regulator is due to rise by 54 per cent, meaning energy bills for some 22 million customers will go up by hundreds of pounds.
Experts have urged householders to submit meter readings for gas and electricity to their supplier on Thursday to show exactly how much energy they have used ahead of Ofgem’s price cap increasing from April 1.
This will prevent firms from estimating usage and potentially charging for energy used before April 1 at the higher rate.
Households should also send regular meter readings, ideally on the same date each month, to prevent their supplier from estimating usage and potentially overcharging for it as they move into the summer months and use less heating.
Gillian Cooper, head of energy policy at Citizens Advice, said: ‘We’d recommend sending meter readings to your supplier ahead of the price cap rise on 1 April. This means your energy company will have an accurate picture of your usage before higher rates come in.
‘If you’re struggling to pay your bill, speak to your energy provider as they have to help you. Citizens Advice can also provide you with free, independent support.’
The energy price cap for those on default tariffs who pay by direct debit is rising by £693 from £1,277 to £1,971 from April 1.
Prepayment customers will see a bigger jump, with their price cap going up by £708, from £1,309 to £2,017.
The regulator was forced to hike the energy price cap to a record £1,971 for a typical household as gas prices soared to unprecedented highs.
Fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA) warned the cost of heating an average home has now doubled in 18 months, leaving 6.5 million households unable to live in a warm safe home across the UK.
NEA chief executive Adam Scorer said: ‘This is the biggest energy price shock in living memory.
‘Millions of people will be priced out of adequate levels of heating and power.
‘For all the anticipation of these price rises, many people on the lowest incomes will be crushed by the reality.
‘Quality of life for millions of people will plummet. Warm homes, cooked food, hot water, clean clothes – all cut back or cut out. Debt will spiral. Physical and mental health will suffer.
‘This energy crisis is about to bite down hard on those least able to cope. Charities like NEA will try to pick up the pieces for those in greatest need. It will be a near impossible task.
‘Last week, the UK Government chose not to prioritise support for those on the lowest incomes.
‘It has crossed its fingers that the market will right itself. This “wait and see” policy could cost lives next winter.’
An Ofgem spokeswoman said: ‘We know this rise will be extremely worrying for many people.
Mr Sunak is facing criticism for failing to do enough to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, with the state pension set to fall in real terms after the triple lock was suspended
‘The energy market has faced a huge challenge due to the unprecedented increase in global gas prices, a once in a 30-year event, and Ofgem’s role as energy regulator is to ensure that, under the price cap, energy companies can only charge a fair price based on the true cost of supplying electricity and gas.
‘Ofgem is working to stabilise the market and over the longer term to diversify our sources of energy which will help protect customers from similar price shocks in the future.’
Chancellor Rishi Sunak pledged to ‘take the sting out’ of the price rises, promising that all 28 million households in Britain would get a £200 up-front rebate on their energy bills from October.
The Government will provide the cash for this, but it wants the money back so will hike bills by £40 per year over the next five years from 2023 to recoup its cash.
If all goes to plan, wholesale energy prices will drop so households can pay back what they owe, without a major rise in bills.
Some energy company insiders worry that while good in principle, the policy is too reliant on falls in global gas prices.
But experts are not sure this will happen, at least not soon. Goldman Sachs has already warned that prices in the gas market are likely to remain at twice their usual levels until 2025.
Mr Sunak also promised a £150 council tax rebate for homes in bands A to D, something he said would cover around 80% of homes in England.
He also promised £144 million to councils to support vulnerable people.
