Crackdown for payment adds to effect of rising bills Energy companies are cracking down on people who can't pay their power bills, as experts warn "energy poverty" is intensifying. The NSW Energy and Water Ombudsman has reported a 37 per cent increase in complaints in the six months to March 31 from people who have been denied an extension or payment plan on their power bill, and a 15 per cent jump from those who have been disconnected or threatened with disconnection. Ombudsman Clare Petre has forecast total complaints - up 43 per cent last year to 25,612 - will continue to rise. She said significant increases in energy prices had increased pressure on household budgets, with more customers in financial trouble. Clare Petre: "Parents are going without food, families are sitting around the kitchen table using one light..." Photo: James Brickwood Some retailers are also applying more active debt recovery policies. We anticipate that we will continue to see further increases in these complaints in the year ahead. Research by an academic specialising in this area indicates about 40 per cent of Australians households "always" have trouble paying power bills. Energy (or fuel) poverty - defined in Britain as households spending more than 10 per cent of net income on power - was more widespread than official statistics showed, said Lynne Chester from the University of Sydney. Not only families on income support were struggling, but low-wage families, too. Parents are going without food, families are sitting around the kitchen table using one light, putting extra clothes on and sleeping in one room to keep warm, and this is Australia 2013! While the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal says the days of big price rises are over, NSW consumers are still reeling from a 108 per cent increase in power bills since 2007. Yearly bills have doubled to about $2073. Dr Chester estimated the poorest 20 per cent of households paid close to or more than 10 per cent of their income on power bills, with energy hardship becoming increasingly widespread among low-wage households. Another report from the Salvation Army in May found 58 per cent of low-income households couldn't pay power bills on time. The disconnection rate continues to rise, from six to about eight in every 1000 consumers, with many households disconnected many times in a year. Energy comparison service GoSwitch.com.au's chief executive, Ben Freund said retailers were "placing a heavier emphasis on pay on time and direct debit, with less tolerance for late payment." Taree couple Jan Bue and Kenne Scope have done everything they can to cut energy costs. Ms Bue, who has lived on a disability pension of $700 a fortnight since having a stroke 15 years ago, even tried turning the hot water heater off at the power box to reduce her bill of $340 a quarter.