UK faces 'deepening crisis' as pensioners shiver and fuel bills soar

Millions of pensioners and people with disabilities are forced to turn off their heating and cut down on food following a £700 increase in energy bills, six leading charities have warned. The UK faces "a deepening crisis" and financial support designed to help those in need is failing to reach most of those who are struggling, according to a new report.

Joanna Elson, Chief Executive of Independent Age, said: "The people in later life we speak to are making drastic and dangerous cutbacks because they cannot afford their energy bills. "They are routinely switching off heating systems for weeks on end, visiting public places to stay warm and cutting down on food so they can pay their energy bills. This is unacceptable."

A study commissioned by Scope, Age UK, Independent Age, Mencap, Sense and Fair by Design, as well as energy company E.ON UK, found annual energy bills are £700 more expensive on average than five years ago. Energy watchdog Ofgem will today publish a new price cap which is expected to confirm another rise.

Around 6.1 million households are in fuel poverty, meaning they spend more than 10 per cent of their income after housing costs on energy, and two million are in debt or arrears.

However a scheme called the Warm Home Discount, overseen by the Energy Security department led by Ed Miliband and designed to help households in need, is not sufficient to solve the problem, the report warned. This will provide a £150 discount on energy bills to 2.7 million households this winter, but the charities said many of those most in need would miss out. The scheme is also due to end next year and the Government has not revealed whether it will be extended or replaced.

The charities called for the discount to rise to £400 a year, with top-up payments for disabled people, with the scheme targeted at all who need it.

Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director at Age UK, said: "Older people should be able to look forward to their later years with comfort and peace of mind, not the constant choices of heating or eating, cold or debt. With the Warm Home Discount scheme due to expire next April, we must not allow there to be a gap in support that would leave thousands of older people exposed to high energy prices all over again."

"This cannot be about getting through one winter at a time - we must build a future in which no older person is left cold or struggling to afford the essentials. To achieve this requires fairer energy prices, properly insulated homes and a support system that tackles the scourge of fuel poverty for the long term."

A government spokesperson said: "We are helping over six million households this winter by expanding the £150 Warm Home Discount and working with Ofgem on a debt relief scheme to bring down bills for every home.

"The only way to bring down energy bills for good is with the government's clean energy superpower mission, which will get the UK off the rollercoaster of fossil fuel prices and onto clean, homegrown power that we control."