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Poorer households turning to pre-pay heating - but that means they pay a 'poverty premium'

A new Mabs report covered the west Dublin areas of Ballyfermot, Chapelizod, Palmerstown and Cherry Orchard.

A NEW REPORT from the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (Mabs) has found that over half of its clients in the west Dublin areas of Ballyfermot, Cherry Orchard, Chapelizod and Palmerstown went without heating in the last 12 months.

The report – Left Behind in the Cold – highlights what it refers to as a “poverty premium” where people have moved towards pre-paid fuel meters in their home which, while decreasing arrears from unpaid bills, has left many without the money to heat their home.

Furthermore, the administration charges for topping up their meters in shops means that they end up spending far more of their income on fuel than the general population.

The report was commissioned to see if – as the economy has improved in recent years – the upturn has had any effect on rates of fuel poverty in people seeking its help, which has been strongly linked with financial difficulty and over-indebtedness.

It found that over seven in ten (72%) of clients who came to its service were in fuel poverty – which means they were spending more than 10% of their disposable income on fuel.

fuel poverty Mabs Mabs

The 56% of people who’ve gone without heat at some stage over the past 12 months is four times higher than the figure for the general population.

It also found that around six in ten of its clients now have pre-payment meters, compared to four in ten in 2013. On top of that, the administration charge of topping up these meters in shops was adding to the cost for these customers.

The report admits that due to the limitations of its study – having received information from 100 Mabs clients – no “causal links or pathways” to explain the data could be done, but it nevertheless could identify “possible associations and relationships”.

Members of the travelling community surveyed spent 21% of their income on fuel costs.

As a result of the reports findings, Mabs made a number of recommendations, including the establishment of a cross agency/departmental task force into fuel poverty.

It also recommended the activation of discretionary powers to the local community welfare officer from the Department of Social Protection to make payments to travellers living in caravans or mobile homes presenting with exceptional fuel costs and those living in sub-standard accommodation.

Marie Clark, money advice coordinator with the service, said: “There is a clear trend among clients away from the more traditional utility suppliers and towards those who operate pre-payment facilities.

There were frequent reports of administration charges for making weekly payments – primarily for meter top-ups – in local shops; such payments may, in our view, amount to a “poverty premium”, the simple fact is that it is not just token meters where a surcharge applies… The service found some shops adding a fee to everything from topping up your waste fee charge to toll fees.

Read: ‘There is a solution for everybody’: Debtors urged not to put their heads in the sand in 2018

Read: How to survive last-minute shopping without overspending (according to a MABS expert)

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    Mute Maniac 2000
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    Sep 8th 2024, 8:35 PM

    Came onto say that the monthly cap is €80 so look into that. Also, you can claim 20% back on your tax for the last 4 years so definitely look into that! If you pay €100 every month that’s €240 alone you can get. Look into batch cooking too – saves me a fortune. You are doing great, hopefully all works out with the bank. I liked this diary

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    Mute Cflood
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    Sep 8th 2024, 8:41 PM

    Very honest tale of life and recovery. I Wish you well

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    Mute Steve Chalk
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    Sep 8th 2024, 10:17 PM

    Very few people have anywhere near 3 times their salary saved into their pension by 40!

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    Mute Sean Parker
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    Sep 8th 2024, 8:04 PM

    DPS cap on prescriptions is 80e if you’re not signed up.

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    Mute rt
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    Sep 8th 2024, 9:19 PM

    after such a fascinating description of a rich, boring life, I know why you’re getting divorced ;)

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    Mute Maniac 2000
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    Sep 8th 2024, 9:26 PM

    @rt: why do people feel the need to bring other people down. If you’ve nothing good to say, say nothing. It’s not easy going from dual income/responsibility to solo income/responsibility and the worry about the bank.

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    Mute John K
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    Sep 8th 2024, 9:29 PM

    @rt: looking forward to your diary, I’m sure we’ll all be green with envy reading about your exciting midweek adventures with women throwing themselves at you and all sorts of antics. It’ll probably be like reading a James Bond novel!

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    Mute Ciaran
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    Sep 8th 2024, 10:03 PM

    @John K: he also taught Elvis how to play karate

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    Mute Jim
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    Sep 9th 2024, 12:41 AM

    Are people still buying this bůllshït.

    Absolute drivel

    This must have been written using a GPT.

    Who comes up with this absolute fantasy. Can’t believe someone is paid to come up with this claptrap.

    Journalism? More like fiction writers

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    Mute Ollie McGlinchey
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    Sep 9th 2024, 2:34 PM

    Who cares?

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