Good afternoon,

We hope you are enjoying the final days of spring, the summer months are right around the corner!

In this edition of the Energy Advice Bulletin, we will cover:

• Radio teleswitch service (RTS) reminder

• Energy price cap decrease

• Customer compensation and debt following review

• Winter Fuel Payment update

Please share with anyone who might also find this useful.

The Selce Team 😊

Radio teleswitch service (RTS) reminder

• The Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) switch off is happening on 30^th June 2025 when the technology that supports RTS meters is switched off.

• The switch off will affect energy customers that have an RTS meter in their home, and it may mean that their heating and hot water supply stops working as normal.

• Energy suppliers have been contacting impacted customers to offer them a smart meter upgrade, at no extra cost

• If you have not been contacted and you believe you have an RTS meter, please get in touch with your energy supplier as soon as possible

• Further information here: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/consumer-issues/radio-teleswitch-service-rts--switch-off/

• There are several ways to check if you have an RTS meter, for example, there may be a separate switch box near your meter with a radio teleswitch label on it (as shown in the image below), or your property is heated using electricity or storage heaters

• Please see images & examples of RTS meters on the Citizens Advice website.

Energy price cap decrease

• On the 23^rd of May, the energy regulator Ofgem announced a 7% reduction of the energy price cap for the period covering July to September 2025. 

• For the average household, this equates to a fall of approximately £11 a month, over the three-month period of the price cap. 

• A recent fall in wholesale prices is the main driver of the overall reduction, accounting for around 90% of the fall. 

• Please see the Ofgem website for more information: Energy price cap will fall by 7% from July | Ofgem

• The table below shows the changes to the price cap:

  

Customer compensation and debt following review

• Ofgem have announced that eight energy suppliers have committed to a compensation and debt write off for at least 40,000 consumers 

This is for customers who:

• Have had an involuntary prepayment meter (PPM) installed for issues including poor data quality and inaccurate record keeping

• Unfair treatment of customers

• Insufficient debt support

• Their vulnerability has not been considered

Customers that have been affected by these issues do not need to do anything, they will be contacted directly by the supplier

Please find more information on the Ofgem website: Suppliers commit to a further £18.6million customer compensation and debt write off following Ofgem’s prepayment meter review | Ofgem

Winter Fuel Payment update

• Winter Fuel Payments will be reinstated to pensioners in England and Wales this winter that earn under £35,000 a year

• If you earn above this threshold, the money will be clawed back automatically or you have the option to opt out, the Government has confirmed.

• This is significantly higher than the threshold last winter, when only pensioners earning under £11,600 a year qualified

• It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. 

• Another key point here is that it is based on individual income, not household income. For example, if one person earns £30,000 a year and the other £40,000, one would receive the winter fuel payment and the other would not

• Please find out more information here: Winter Fuel Payment criteria confirmed - MSE analysis

• The government has also added that "no one will need to register with HMRC for this or take any further action".