Greedy energy giants facing huge fines for failing to cut Britain's most vulnerable people to cut utility bills Prices went up to pay for free home insulation, double glazing and boilers But some companies never carried out the work that was expected British Gas and SSE among the firms facing huge fines from Ofgem Tough: Companies put up prices for the majority to help pay for green solutions for the poorest and oldest in society, but now face fines for not spending the cash Greedy energy giants face big fines for failing to meet promises to help thousands of Britain's poorest families and pensioners to cut their bills. Companies put up bills for millions to raise a pot of cash to pay for free home insulation, double glazing and new boilers for the poor. However, a number, including British Gas and SSE, collected the money but failed to carry out all the work that was expected. Industry regulator, Ofgem, today warned that the firms involved face enforcement action, which is likely to include multi-million pound fines. Executive director of the consumer champion Which?, Richard Lloyd, welcomed the crackdown, saying: "It's right that Ofgem is taking action against those energy companies who have not met their energy efficiency targets. Consumers pay for these schemes through their energy bills, and so have a right to know how much they are costing. Requirements to make millions of homes more energy efficient were established under two schemes, CERT - Carbon Emissions Reduction Target - and CESP - Community Energy Saving Programme. The idea was that these would cut the UK's carbon emissions by helping the poor to reduce their energy use and bills. Each major energy supplier and generator was given specific targets in terms of the number of homes that would be improved and the resulting cut in carbon emissions. The CERT scheme involved insulating homes, switching the energy supply from oil to gas or paying for free energy displays to encourage people to cut down on use of heat and light. The work would save 293million tonnes of carbon emissions, which was the equivalent to insulating 11.5m homes. Improvements: The money raised from higher prices was meant to be used to pay for new boilers, insulation and other greener energy products The CESP scheme encouraged the firms to form partnerships with local councils and housing associations to support major schemes that would transform entire estates. This involved replacing old inefficient boilers, providing solid wall insulation or green energy through, for example, solar panels. All the work was due to be completed by December last year, however, British Gas, the country's biggest household supplier failed to meet the targets. In terms of CESP, it only reached 62.4per cent of its obligations, while the figure was 98.9per cent for the CERT scheme. Earlier this year, the company revealed an 11per cent rise in profits to £606million for 2012. This helped its parent company, Centrica, to post a 14per cent rise in profits to £2.7billion. Scottish Power only met 70per cent of its CESP target. SSE managed a score of 90.9per cent on CESP and 98.5per cent on CERT. Hot water: British Gas is among the companies facing punishment from the energy watchdog A number of electricity generating firms also failed badly to hit CESP targets, including the giant Drax power station, in north Yorkshire, at just 37.1per cent, and GDF Suez/IPM, which has seven power plants, at 38.6per cent. The worst performing firm was Intergen, which runs three power stations in England, which met just 6.5per cent of the target it was given to help families improve their home energy efficiency. The net result of the collective failure is that hundreds of thousands of homes have not had the help expected to cut energy use and so lower bills. Energy & Climate Change Secretary, Ed Davey, said millions of people have been helped by the schemes, which have now been replaced by what he said was a new tougher regime. However, he said: "I am disappointed that under the old schemes, some companies failed to meet their obligations. Ofgem will be conducting a thorough investigation and will take any necessary enforcement action. We are already acting through the Energy Bill to give Ofgem the teeth it needs in future to get compensation to those directly affected. Ofgem's enforcement chief, Sarah Harrison, said: "At a time of rising energy bills energy efficiency can make a big difference for consumers. Ofgem's role is to ensure that consumers do not lose out by the failure of firms to deliver all the help required or are not disadvantaged by late delivery. British Gas B said it has spent £1.1billion on home insulation and energy efficiency measures under the CERT and CESP schemes. This paid for the insulation of three million homes and 65,000 new boilers. It blamed the bad weather over the winter for not being able to carry out as many home improvements as it would have liked. Scottish Power said that while it did not meet the December 2012 deadline, it has contracts in place to ensure the promised insulation and other measures are carried out. SSE said it did complete all the work that was expected, but was unable to provide the necessary verification in time.