THE COMMISSION FOR Regulation of Utilities (CRU) has announced it will be lifting the moratorium in place on disconnecting gas and electricity customers for non-payment from 1 June. 

This moratorium was put in place in January and was designed to provide another layer of protection for customers for the duration of the Covid-19 restrictions. 

The CRU has continued to monitor the levels of customers arrears since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. 

Since then, an upward trend in debt levels has emerged and it is clear that long-term debt may be a challenge for both customers and suppliers, the CRU said.

A proportion of customers are remaining in debt with their energy suppliers for longer which, in effect, stores up the problem for customers to a later date, it said. 

“The moratoriums that have been in place since March of last year have served to provide an additional layer of protection to gas and electricity customers at a difficult time,” CRU chairperson Aoife MacEvilly said. 

“As the Covid restrictions ease and society and the economy opens up again, the time has come to revert to the standard high levels of protection of that exist for customers. This will help avoid increasing customer debt,” MacEvilly said. 

She is asking customers to get in touch with their supplier “as early as possible if they are experiencing difficulty in paying bills or wish to establish their eligibility to register as a vulnerable or priority customer”. 

Customers can find further information on the customer protection measures on www.cru.ie or by calling the CRU customer care team on 1890 404 404.