Smart meter warning issued over 'inaccurate' readings as Brits urged to check energy bills

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Energy bills are showing no sign of decreasing as the UK battles to cope with the cost of living crisis. Inflation has skyrocketed to a record seven percent following the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

Energy regulate Ofgem has also just announced that UK should update the price cap on energy bills every three months instead of twice a year to help households. The energy price cap rose by 54 percent on April 1, leaving customers having to deal with massive increases in their energy bills, with some paying more than double for their gas and electricity.

An investigation launched into claims firms are ripping off customers through direct debits was announced last week by Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng. Ofgem chief executive, Jonathan Brearley, confirmed firms are seeing “bad practices”, in order to ease cashflow problems, as businesses pass on the rising energy costs to consumers, reports the Express.

Read more: EDF warns customers about severe impact of double energy price rise in October

Data specialist Anita Dougall, an expert in the energy industry, has shared her thoughts on the energy bills hike and the impact on direct debit payments. Anita explained the energy industry is currently suffering from a “lack of data maturity”, which is a stumbling block for transparent and fair charges.

According to the expert, this leaves energy firms without sufficient visibility over their customer's information as they set direct debits. When asked why consumers are being exposed to unreasonably inflated direct debits, Ms Dougall said: “There are many factors at play, but lack of visibility is a big one which is often down to a lack of data maturity in the energy sector."

She added: “Many suppliers set Direct