A third of UK adults are currently in debt to their energy firm or worried about falling behind ahead of a 13% jump in the price cap from July, a survey suggests.
The figure rises to 45% of parents with a child under 18, and 35% of disabled people, the poll for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition found.
Among those in energy debt, the median amount owed to an energy supplier was £750.
The survey also found that 13% of those in debt or worried about missing payments owed money to “someone who makes them feel scared”, rising to 24% of those who are already in arrears.
Some 32% of those already in energy debt had tried to use less energy over the last 12 months by turning the heating off or taking shorter showers, while 25% said they kept their home colder or warmer than was comfortable and 21% had missed rent or mortgage payments.
More than one in five of those in energy debt have needed to skip meals (21%), while 18% had turned to a food bank for support to help cope with costs or arrears.
The End Fuel Poverty Coalition found supplier support for struggling households had been “mixed”, and while 15% of those in arrears had been referred to a hardship fund and 15% were on a repayment plan, 13% reported having no contact from their supplier in the past 12 months.
Fewer than one in five (18%) of those in arrears felt they had been treated fairly by their supplier and just 8% had been referred to debt advice.
Simon Francis, co-ordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said: “These figures lay bare the true cost of years of failure to fix energy debt caused by the sharp increases in bills.
“Millions of people are in debt to their energy company or worried about falling behind, and yet the price shock profiteers are posting billions in profits.
“The figures also show that this is a can’t pay crisis, not a won’t pay one. Very few people who are in energy debt are also in high-earning households.
“Instead, it is ordinary people who are skipping meals, visiting food banks and, most alarmingly, resorting to risky forms of borrowing just to keep the lights on.
“The energy industry, which has caused this debt through its profiteering, must be made to contribute to clearing this debt mountain.”
Centre for Sustainable Energy chief executive Janine Michael said: “At the Centre for Sustainable Energy, we speak to people every day who are struggling to keep up with their energy bills – not because they won’t pay, but because they can’t.
“The long-awaited energy debt relief scheme must be brought forward urgently, and people in debt need access to proper debt advice, not just a letter from their supplier.
“But debt relief alone is a sticking plaster. The real fix is reducing the amount of energy households use in the first place through proper investment in energy efficiency and phasing out gas. Until we address that, we’ll be having this same conversation next winter.”
Ned Hammond, deputy director of customer policy at Energy UK, said: “Household energy debt has doubled to £5.5 billion in recent years and continues to spiral out of control – it could reach £7 billion by the end of this year.
“Too many households genuinely can’t afford to cover their energy costs, but current regulations also make it all too easy for customers to fall into arrears, with limited routes to get out.
“Suppliers are doing what they can to help customers and reduce debt levels, but the sheer scale of the problem means the industry can’t fix it alone.
“To overcome this crisis, a comprehensive debt strategy is required. This should start with the swift launch of Ofgem’s Debt Relief Scheme.”
Opinium surveyed 2,000 UK adults between May 29 and June 1, of which 9% were behind on payments to their energy supplier and a further 22% (about 12 million) were worried about falling behind on their energy bills.
