Chandler's Ford-based firm, Utilita Energy, claims 2.25 million households are 'suffering in silence' with outdated key and card pay-as-you-go meters.

CEO Bill Bullen has praised Citizens Advice and the Committee for Fuel Poverty for recognising evidence provided by his company, highlighting the damage these old meters cause to vulnerable consumers.

Yet, he fears that a decade of warnings has been ignored, leaving millions still struggling.

Mr Bullen said: "Despite attending a roundtable Utilita hosted in December 2022, which called for a ban on the inferior and outdated meters, industry stakeholders have taken no meaningful action. In fact, Ofgem has lowered the bar in terms of suppliers’ smart installation targets.

“Citizens Advice’s latest consumer action plan acknowledges the benefits of a smart meter for prepayment households but refers to prepayment households being reluctant to accept one. As a specialist Smart PAYG supplier we have experienced few issues with smart-enabling 95% of our customer base. I simply cannot accept that customers are the main barrier here. 

"This is why I’m calling on the regulator to introduce an immediate ban on the installation of old-style meters, and to mandate suppliers to prioritise smart meter installations for prepayment households to stop the suffering in silence."