FUEL poverty campaigners are urging Ofgem to protect energy customers from “regressive and discriminatory” standing charges, which are set to soar this spring. 

Millions of customers on variable rate tariffs are facing an 80 per cent increase in daily standing charges when changes take effect on Friday. 

This is on top of a sharp rise in energy unit prices. 

In a letter to Ofgem, Fuel Poverty Action warned today that this will have the biggest impact on poor customers already struggling to heat and power their homes. 

“Fixed charges are well known to penalise the poorest energy users, who consume less energy,” the letter reads. 

“Ideal economics has shown that the poorest 10 per cent will now spend almost a third of their energy payments (about £265) on merely connecting to the energy system, leaving them with much less to spend on heating their homes, cooking and lighting. 

“This is regressive and unacceptable.” 

The campaign group accused the energy regulator of passing failed energy providers’ costs onto customers by allowing the fixed standing charge element of energy bills to increase dramatically. 

Fuel Poverty Action co-director Ruth London said: “Why have Ofgem decided to make the poorest customers pay for their bad decisions and for bad practice in the industry? 

“This huge injustice must be urgently reversed. Then standing charges should be ended and we should move instead to Energy For All, a pricing structure where everyone will get enough energy free to cover their basic needs for heating, cooking, and power.”

Standing charges, which are applied regardless of whether any electricity is consumed, pay for costs that are fixed by the supplier, including service administration fees. 

Ofgem estimates that direct debit customers’ standing charges for electricity will increase to 45p a day from the current 25p from April 1. Gas standing charges are set to rise by just over 4 per cent. 

For prepayment customers, the regulator suggests that charges will go up to 50p a day for electricity. 

An Ofgem spokesperson said: “Our top priority is to protect consumers, including making sure bill payers pay a fair price.”

Struggling customers may be eligible for extra support, the regulator added.