Electric Ireland has announced a €50 credit for all its residential electricity customers along with further funding for its hardship fund.
The State’s largest electricity supplier to the residential sector says its 1.1 million-plus customers will receive the credit over the next fortnight. The credit will not apply for gas customers.
It comes on top of the Government’s series of €200 credits which are being applied to successive bills from November 1st, January 1st and March 1st – a central plank the its cost-of-living package of supports. Electric Ireland says some customers might not see those State credits for a couple of months, after each of those dates depending on when they receive a bill.
Pay-as-you-go customers will have the credit applied to their meters between Tuesday and Thursday of this week. The bulk of residential customers, who pay by bill, will see the money credited to online accounts from Monday, January 2nd, while those receiving paper bills will have the credit applied to the first bill sent out after Tuesday, January 3rd.
The €50 credit includes VAT, Electric Ireland said. The credit will cost the energy supplier about €50.5 million, allowing for the 9 per cent VAT element.
“2022 has been a very challenging year for energy customers, primarily as a result of increases in international gas prices,” said Pat Fenlon, executive director at Electric Ireland. “We are acutely aware of the pressures that customers face this winter and, recognising these exceptional circumstances, Electric Ireland is forgoing profit from its residential electricity business. Electric Ireland’s residential customers can each expect to receive €50 credit in the new year.”
Electric Ireland has increased prices three times this year, in May, August and October. Customers are now paying 90 per cent more per unit of electricity than they were back in April.
The company also announced on Monday that it was increasing the size of its hardship fund to €5 million from €3 million previously.
The hardship fund is open to customers who are having difficulty paying their electricity bills because of the surge in prices over the past year.
It is available to customers who have been with the company for at least 12 months, with credits available against their account. It is administered on the company’s behalf by St Vincent de Paul and the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (Mabs).
The company says the hardship fund will operate through the winter months and into next year.
Mr Fenlon said the company was “committed to helping any of our customers who experience financial difficulty”.
He urged customers who are having trouble paying their bills to contact the company. The company noted that a moratorium on disconnection is in place for all residential customers under the end of February so that no families are left without power through the worst of the winter. The moratorium extends to the end of March for designated “vulnerable customers”.
