Powergen attacked on bills for elderly

POWERGEN came under attack after it emerged that about 400,000 of its elderly customers face rises of up to 9.9% on gas and electricity bills.

The changes next month affect the Staywarm scheme, a fixed-payment system based on house size and number of residents, and the Age Concern tariff, where customers sign up through the charity.

MPs and consumer groups said there was a danger many older people would have to cut back on other essentials to meet the rises.

But Powergen, which raised its prices for standard customers by 6.9% in January, said it had delayed any increase for older people until after the winter.

It said a majority of those affected had not had a price increase for two years or more.