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Hold the Line

Forced Prepayment Meters

They cannot just switch you to prepay or break in to fit a meter. The rules are strict, and they are on your side.

A guide to using AI to assert your rights as a human, calmly and on the facts. We use AI to do this work. We suggest you do too.

Two ways to use this guide, both free

You do not have to use AI. These guides work on their own. AI just makes it faster.

1

Let Claude do the work

The AI assistant reads your letter, works out your stage, and drafts what you need to send. You just answer its questions.

Start with Claude →
2

Or do it yourself

Work through the stages at your own pace, in plain English. No AI needed.

Work through it yourself →

New to Claude, or not sure what it is? It is free, here is how to start.

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Turn Claude into your personal forced prepayment meters case manager

+

Tap the plus to set this up.

You can copy the prompts on this page into Claude one at a time. Or you can install the Case Manager skill once, and Claude will walk you through your whole case from start to finish, every time, without you having to explain it again.

  1. Download the skill file below.
  2. In Claude, open Customize in the left sidebar, then the Skills tab.
  3. Click the + button, choose Create skill, and upload the file. Claude reads it automatically.
  4. Make sure the skill is toggled on.
  5. In Cowork, type / to pick it, or just say what's happened and Claude will use it.
Download the skill file

Requires "Code execution and file creation" to be enabled in Settings. The skill stays private to your account.

Free Claude does not install skills, but you do not need it to. Copy the prompt below into Claude at claude.ai and it will act as your case manager for this conversation.

My energy supplier wants to force a prepayment meter on me, or already has, and I want help. Act as my Prepayment Meter Case Manager and walk me through this slowly and calmly, one step at a time, the way a patient adviser sitting beside me would. Please do not overwhelm me: ask me only one or two questions at a time, and wait for my answer before you move on. First, reassure me and explain in plain words what is really going on. Then, if it matters, ask me which UK nation I am in (England, Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland), as the rules differ. Then gently gather what you need, one thing at a time: first and most importantly, whether anyone in the home is vulnerable (elderly, seriously ill, disabled, or a young child); then what the supplier has said or done; the dates; whether there is a warrant; and my circumstances. Once you understand my situation, explain it to me simply, tell me what stage I am at and what it means, and tell me the single most important thing to do first and why. Then hold my hand through it: tell me exactly what to gather, write the letters and any complaint to the regulator or the Energy Ombudsman that I need in full and ready to send, and explain clearly how and where to send it. Watch my deadlines at every step so I never miss one. Never tell me to just accept it, and never rush me. At the end of each step, give me a short plain-English summary of what we have done and the one thing to do next. I am acting for myself and I want to come out of this feeling calm and in control.

Keep the conversation open and save the documents Claude produces. That is all you need to start.

Before anything else

A supplier cannot force you onto prepay on a whim. There are hard rules, and they protect you.

After the scandal where suppliers were caught forcing prepayment meters into vulnerable people's homes using rushed court warrants, the rules were rewritten and made part of every supplier's licence. A forced installation, whether by fitting a meter under warrant or by switching a smart meter to prepay mode remotely, is now a tightly controlled last resort.

If a supplier is threatening to move you to prepay, or has done so, you have real protections, especially if anyone in the home is vulnerable. Many forced installations during the scandal were found to be wrongful, and compensation was paid.

Your first move is to understand what they must do before they can act, and to put your circumstances on the record.

Your first move, two minutes
1
Photograph any letter or notice from your supplier about prepayment or a warrant.
2
Open Claude at claude.ai, free on any phone.
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Copy the prompt below and paste it into Claude: "My energy supplier wants to force a prepayment meter on me, or already has, and I want help. Act as my Prepayment Meter Case Manager and help me calmly, one step at a time. Ask me only one or two questions at a time and wait for my answer. Start by reassuring me, then ask me which nation I am in, then gently ask me whether anyone in the home is vulnerable, and what the supplier has said or done. Then explain to me in plain English what it is, what stage I am at, and exactly what to do first. Do not rush me, and never tell me to just accept it."
4
Read the plain answer, then find your country below.
If anyone in your home is elderly, seriously ill, disabled, or a very young child, say so early and clearly. These are the strongest protections of all.

Choose your country. The rules differ because Northern Ireland has a separate energy regulator.

Do it yourself

Work through it at your own pace, in plain English. Pick your country to begin.

Where do you live?

In England, Wales and Scotland, energy is regulated by Ofgem. Since the rules became mandatory in the supplier licences, a supplier must clear a series of strict hurdles before it can force a prepayment meter on you, whether by warrant or by remote switch of a smart meter.

For the highest-risk households, forced installation is banned outright. For everyone else, the supplier must try repeatedly to contact you, assess your situation on a home visit, and treat prepay as a genuine last resort.

The warrant application itself differs slightly: in England and Wales it goes through the magistrates' court, in Scotland through the sheriff court. Click each stage.

The Protections, England, Wales & Scotland
1

Who cannot be forced at all

Outright bans for the highest-risk homes
Strongest shield
▼  Show protections

Some households cannot have a prepayment meter forced on them at all. If you fall into these groups, tell your supplier immediately and in writing. This stops a forced installation in its tracks.

  • Homes needing continuous supply for health reasons, including anyone dependent on powered medical equipment.
  • Households where everyone is over 75 with no other support in the home.
  • Residents with severe health issues, terminal illness, or a medical dependence on a warm home such as serious respiratory conditions or sickle cell disease.
  • Homes with very young children, protections cover households with children under the age set in the rules. Say so if this is you.
  • No one able to top up, where physical or mental incapacity means no one could operate the meter.
Put it on the record now. Ask Claude: "Draft a letter to my energy supplier stating that my household is protected from involuntary prepayment installation because [reason], and asking them to confirm in writing that they will not proceed." Email it and keep the proof.

Would you rather Claude just did this for you? That is the easy route, and usually the best one. Tap below to copy a ready-made message, paste it into a Claude chat at claude.ai, and Claude takes it from there, writing whatever you need to send.

New to Claude? It is free, here is how.
2

What they must do first

Repeated contact and a welfare visit
Hard rules
▼  Show protections

Even where no outright ban applies, the supplier must clear strict steps before any forced installation. If they skip these, the installation is improper and can be challenged and reversed.

  • At least ten contact attempts, the supplier must make real attempts to reach you and discuss the debt before moving to prepay.
  • A site welfare visit, they must visit and assess your circumstances and any vulnerability face to face before installing.
  • Body-worn cameras, the lead representative must wear an audio or body camera on welfare visits and warrant installations, with the footage kept for audit.
  • Last resort only, prepay must be the last option, after offers of affordable repayment and support have been made.
  • Short-term credit, a credit (around £30 per meter, or an equivalent non-disconnection period) must be added so you are not left immediately off supply.
If they have skipped steps

Photograph and date everything. Ask Claude: "Draft a complaint to my energy supplier setting out which steps in the involuntary prepayment Code of Practice they failed to follow, and demanding they halt and reverse the installation."

Would you rather Claude just did this for you? That is the easy route, and usually the best one. Tap below to copy a ready-made message, paste it into a Claude chat at claude.ai, and Claude takes it from there, writing whatever you need to send.

New to Claude? It is free, here is how.
3

The warrant and your complaint route

Court warrant  ·  Ombudsman backstop
Push back
▼  Show protections

To force entry to fit a meter, the supplier needs a court warrant, magistrates' court in England and Wales, sheriff court in Scotland. During the scandal, hundreds of these were rubber-stamped in minutes. You can challenge the process, and if the supplier will not put it right, the Energy Ombudsman can.

  • Challenge the warrant basis, if the supplier misled the court about your circumstances or skipped the Code steps, the warrant may be improper. Ask Claude to draft your challenge.
  • Complain to the supplier formally, put it in writing and demand a deadlock letter if they reject you. Ask Claude to draft the complaint.
  • Escalate to the Energy Ombudsman, free and independent. After eight weeks, or a deadlock letter, they can order the supplier to reverse the meter and pay compensation. Ask Claude to prepare your Ombudsman submission.
  • Wrongful past installation, if you were forced onto prepay during the scandal period and were vulnerable, you may be owed a reversal and compensation. Ask Claude to help you claim.
Free help: Citizens Advice runs the official consumer energy service and can act on warrant and prepay cases. The Energy Ombudsman is free. Ask Claude to draft each letter and write the letters.

Would you rather Claude just did this for you? That is the easy route, and usually the best one. Tap below to copy a ready-made message, paste it into a Claude chat at claude.ai, and Claude takes it from there, writing whatever you need to send.

New to Claude? It is free, here is how.

Northern Ireland has its own energy market and its own regulator, the Utility Regulator, not Ofgem. The Ofgem code described for Great Britain does not apply here. Northern Ireland also has a very high proportion of prepayment, or "keypad", meters already, and its own consumer protections.

The principle is similar, suppliers must treat vulnerable customers with care and prepay should not be imposed unfairly, but the specific rules, the regulator, and the complaint routes are different. Do not rely on the Ofgem rules above.

Because the detail is NI-specific and changes, verify the current position with the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland and the Utility Regulator, or ask Claude to confirm the current NI rules for your situation.

The Protections, Northern Ireland
1

Put your circumstances on record

Vulnerability protections apply in NI too
Start here
▼  Show steps

As in the rest of the UK, NI suppliers must take account of vulnerability and treat customers fairly. If anyone in your home is elderly, seriously ill, disabled, or a young child, tell your supplier in writing and ask to be added to their care or critical care register.

  • Register vulnerability, ask Claude: "Draft a letter to my Northern Ireland energy supplier registering my household's vulnerability and asking what protections apply to me."
  • Ask for affordable repayment, request a manageable plan rather than enforced prepay. Ask Claude to draft the offer.
  • Get the current rules, ask Claude to confirm the present Utility Regulator protections for your circumstances.
Free help in Northern Ireland: the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland handles energy complaints and can act for you. Advice NI can help with the underlying debt.

Would you rather Claude just did this for you? That is the easy route, and usually the best one. Tap below to copy a ready-made message, paste it into a Claude chat at claude.ai, and Claude takes it from there, writing whatever you need to send.

New to Claude? It is free, here is how.
2

Complain and escalate

Consumer Council is the backstop in NI
Escalate
▼  Show steps

If your supplier acts unfairly or will not engage, complain formally and escalate. In Northern Ireland the Consumer Council is the statutory body that handles energy complaints, rather than the Energy Ombudsman used in Great Britain.

  • Formal complaint first, put it in writing to the supplier and ask for their final response. Ask Claude to draft it.
  • Escalate to the Consumer Council, they can investigate and press the supplier. Ask Claude to prepare your submission.
  • Keep records, photograph and date every letter and note every call.
How to submit

Complain to your supplier, then to the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland. Ask Claude to draft each letter and write the letters.

Would you rather Claude just did this for you? That is the easy route, and usually the best one. Tap below to copy a ready-made message, paste it into a Claude chat at claude.ai, and Claude takes it from there, writing whatever you need to send.

New to Claude? It is free, here is how.

What the System Depends On

It depended, for years, on people not knowing that a warrant signed in a courtroom in seconds could be challenged at all. It depended on the most vulnerable being the least likely to push back.

That changed when the scandal broke. The rules are now strict, the protections for vulnerable homes are real, and wrongful installations have been reversed with compensation paid. But only for the people who knew to ask.

Put your circumstances on record. Make them prove they followed the rules. Escalate to the free regulator. You are not powerless here.

Know someone facing this? Send them this page. It is free, and no one should face it alone.