London, Jan 23, 2026, 01:09 GMT
- UK energy watchdog Ofgem ordered Ovo to pay £2.765 million in redress after late Warm Home Discount rebates
- 11,646 customers affected; more than 7,700 were on the Priority Services Register
- Customers will be paid automatically, with extra sums for medically vulnerable households and prepay meter top-up failures
Britain’s energy regulator has ordered Ovo to pay more than £2.7 million in compensation after thousands of vulnerable customers waited months for a government-backed electricity bill discount that should have arrived during the winter.
The ruling lands as households remain sensitive to energy costs and as regulators push suppliers to treat vulnerable customers as a priority, not an afterthought. Delays matter most in winter, when cold weather can turn a missed rebate into a health risk.
Ovo was more than 19 months late in passing on the Warm Home Discount to 11,646 customers, who did not receive their rebate until November 2025, Ofgem said. Of those affected, 7,726 were on the Priority Services Register and 4,066 were classed as medically vulnerable.
Ofgem set the redress at £150 for every affected customer, with an additional £150 for those deemed medically vulnerable. Customers who use prepayment meters will also receive £100 for each instance in which they were unable to top up their meter between March 31 and May 31, 2024, causing it to run out.
The Warm Home Discount, often shortened to WHD, is a government scheme that gives eligible households £150 off an electricity bill. The Priority Services Register is a free list that flags customers who may need extra help because of health, safety or communication needs.
Neil Lawrence, director of delivery and schemes at Ofgem, said the discount was “a vital source of support” and warned that delays “can cause real harm,” especially for those with medical needs. He said suppliers must deliver payments on time and that the regulator was prepared to take “strong action” when they do not.
Ovo apologised for the delays. A company spokesperson said it had worked with Ofgem to understand what went wrong and had put measures in place to stop it happening again, adding that all affected customers had now been compensated.
Ofgem said Ovo missed the March 31, 2024 statutory deadline because of an internal error, which the company later reported to the regulator. A detailed investigation followed, and Ovo updated its systems, according to Ofgem.
Customers do not need to make a claim for the redress. Ofgem said Ovo has already contacted those affected and the compensation will be paid automatically.
But the episode highlights a risk for both regulators and suppliers: errors in delivering targeted support can pile up quietly, and the fallout tends to hit customers who have the least room to absorb it. Ofgem said it will keep monitoring suppliers’ compliance with the scheme and expects timely payments “over the winter months”.
Ovo is one of the country’s biggest suppliers and Sky News described it as the fourth largest gas and electricity provider, which means even a small systems problem can spill into a big customer impact.
For Ovo, the enforcement action adds to a tougher backdrop. The company has faced pressure to meet tighter financial standards for suppliers, and the Warm Home Discount breach is the latest reputational blow, the Guardian reported.
