Debt Strategy: next steps
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Update on our approach to the Debt Relief Scheme (DRS) and our regulatory expectations for suppliers on Additional Support Credit (ASC).
Details
Ofgem published our Debt Strategy in December 2024. This set out a range of priorities and actions we would instigate to help reduce the impact of energy debt burden. This included policy proposals for a Debt Relief Scheme (DRS), developing new standards for how suppliers should identify and treat customers who are struggling to pay (Debt Standards), as well as a range of work in related areas such as access to credit.
Debt Relief Scheme
Today we are publishing a technical working paper to advance our thinking on the Debt Relief Scheme. The scheme could help struggling households get back on track, and rectify some of the debt that built up as a result of the crisis. We plan to publish a statutory consultation in the Autumn ahead of a decision in the winter.
Additional Support Credit
We will write to stakeholders to remind them of our expectations of how they interpret the rules for provision of Additional Support Credit for consumers in vulnerable situations. This clarification is to ensure that support is appropriately targeted to those most in need, and forms part of our wider debt strategy work.
Debt Strategy Update
We plan to publish a broader update to our debt strategy in Autumn 2025. We expect this to include further considerations on:
- improving customer trust and engagement in the sector, to ensure better debt outcomes for individual customers as well as for the sector as a whole
- ensuring we have a controlled approach to credit in the retail market, including exploring the roles of different payment methods, as well as reviewing how and when financial support should be offered to customers
- tackling system inefficiencies and incentives to ensure consumers are supported and encouraged to pay their bills