Vulnerable elderly residents face £2,000 hike in energy bills

By Robert Firth, Local Democracy Reporter

Elderly residents have hit out at a council after it hiked their heating and hot water bills by 300 per cent and said they could leave if they didn’t want to pay the extra £2,000 a year.

Residents of sheltered housing complex Macintosh Court, in Leigham Court Road, Streatham, are among thousands of Lambeth council tenants with communal heating systems hit by a giant increase in their service charge payments since April.

Many of the tenants in Macintosh Court only receive the basic pension of £156.20 per week, and are struggling to find the extra cash needed to cover the huge rise.

Others living in the 45-flat complex struggled to understand notices warning them about the bill increase from the council, and only became aware months later after they received letters warning they were in arrears.

Macintosh Court resident Linda Lee, 86, said she’d had to stop taking her grandchildren to the cinema in an attempt to save money to cover the increased charges.

She said: “It’s such a mess. It’s such a large increase that it has put me in the red.

“It’s three times as much money. We are all hanging on by our teeth. I’ve had to cut back on all the good stuff in life to pay for this. I don’t eat out any more. I don’t take my grandchildren to the cinema.

“You call the council and you get an automated message. I can’t understand them. It’s totally disorientating. I’ve not been able to talk to anybody. I just get threatening letters saying they want more money.”

Antonio Tsimpinos, 72, said it was frustrating that he had no control over his bill, unlike people with individual boilers.

He said: “It’s outrageous. I don’t have any control over the bill. I can’t control my heating.

“They shouldn’t charge the flats the same amount of money because some people want it on 24-hours-a-day, but I hardly have it on.”

A Lambeth Council spokesman said: “We understand the huge strain that rising bills and the cost-of-living crisis have put on households with the least, and will act on Macintosh Court residents’ concerns about the way the council has interacted with them about this challenging situation.

“Last year the council’s long-term contracts meant we were able to keep costs low for residents, compared to the huge increases in prices for people with private heating. Unfortunately, these contracts are now over, and our suppliers’ prices have gone up a lot, which is why bills have gone up.

“While we can’t do anything about that sadly, we have directed all the support we can to people most impacted by the cost-of-living crisis. Last year, Lambeth distributed more than £8 million in financial aid to those who need support the most.

“This year we’ve put support worth another £10 million together, with a specific portion of that set aside to support council tenants hardest hit by the cost-of-living crisis.”

Pictured top: Residents of Macintosh Court in Streatham are unhappy about the bill rise (Picture: Robert Firth)