OVO Energy hits customers with new monthly fee as older people warned

Energy firm OVO Energy is introducing a new monthly fee to customers in a move which MPs worry will affect older people.

The energy supplier which has more than four million customers in the UK is set to start charging a monthly £1.50 fee to customers who still want to receive paper bills.

The charge will begin in December, meaning it will cost £18 a year to keep paper billing.

OVO has said it will write to its customers who still receive paper statements to tell them about the change and the charge before the rollout of the changes in December.

Though MPs have expressed concern for the possible effects on older customers, any elderly customers can enroll on the Priority Services Register to avoid the charge and OVO says it will also exempt those it believes should be on the PSR.

The letter is set to include a QR code which customers can scan and opt in to receive paperless billing from December and avoid the new charge.

But some vulnerable customers will not be charged even if they continue to receive paper bills, OVO said, including those on the Priority Services Register, those who have Adaptive Communications, customers who OVO thinks should be on the Priority Services Register and customers who may be financially vulnerable.

Those customers will instead be offered a PDF of their bill.

MPs have expressed concern about the changes and have called on OVO to reverse its decision. 

On November 6, MPs tabled a motion in the House of Commons about  OVO Energy, which was signed by 16 Lib Dems, two independent MPs and a Labour MP.

It said: “That this House notes with concern OVO Energy’s intention to introduce monthly fees for customers that receive their bills in paper format from December; believes that such a fee is counterproductive as families continue to struggle with high energy costs, particularly in the run-up to winter; further notes that such a change risks disadvantaging older and other vulnerable people, even allowing for planned mitigations; and calls on OVO Energy to reverse this harmful and unnecessary decision immediately.”

In response, a spokesperson for OVO said: “Like most energy providers, we already send digital communications to most customers.

“We still offer paper communications to anyone on the Priority Services Register, those who receive adapted communications, and anyone needing additional financial support.”