Public Accounts Committee call for stronger regulation of UK broadband

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is responsible for examining the value for money of UK Government projects, is this morning expected to find that water, energy and broadband regulators (e.g. Ofcom) are not doing enough to support vulnerable customers, and will call on them to act more urgently to ensure people get the standard of service they deserve.

Just to recap. The PAC launched an inquiry earlier this year to examine the effectiveness of market regulators (Ofwat, Ofgem and Ofcom), which is designed to complement a recent report from the National Audit Office (NAO). The NAO found that Ofcom needed to improve their approach to ensure that consumers, particularly vulnerable users, receive good outcomes.

The NAO highlighted various telecoms related problems, such as with the well-known lack of awareness about broadband Social Tariffs (example), the difficulties that many consumers experience with contacting their ISP (e.g. email addresses being hard to find on websites), billing confusion and customers often not being directed to the relevant dispute resolution service (ombudsman for complaints handling).

However, the scope of the NAO’s report was very limited and did not extend to issues such as service pricing, quality, resilience of physical networks and the financial resilience of companies, which is something that the PAC seems to inherit. But we do get some new recommendations.

Broadly, the PAC’s report calls for the government and regulators to work together and help companies proactively identify those in need of support. This should be done with a view to making discounted tariffs a “default” for the most financially vulnerable (it’s unclear how this would be presented to consumers).

The report also calls for the creation of a single central register of customers allowing needs and data to be shared between companies across sectors (i.e. so people do not have to tell multiple suppliers about their personal circumstances). But the latter also sounds like a potentially risky idea from the point of view of personal data security.

On top of that there’s talk of establishing an organisation with responsibility for providing “free advice to telecoms consumers“, which sounds a lot like the work that the Citizens Advice agency already does. Finally, the PAC wants Ofcom to do more to boost the take-up of Social Tariffs (fewer than 9% of eligible broadband customers are on social tariffs).

Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown MP, Chair of the PAC, said:

“Bills are increasing. Energy debt is correspondingly rising. We are in the midst of a continuing cost of living crisis, with little sign that the lookout globally will become any more forgiving for the vulnerable any time soon. Some of the economic and geopolitical drivers of this are unavoidable. There is nothing unavoidable about energy, water and broadband consumers being allowed to drift into debt through poor communication and coordination from and between suppliers, regulators and the government.

In such circumstances, with this report, our Committee is asking Ofgem, Ofwat and Ofcom if they are going to sit back and watch as consumers navigate a confusing and inaccessible landscape – or will they and government work together to provide a united front for the public that could actually make a difference to rising hardship? How forceful are they willing to be in the use of their powers to make sure companies do everything possible to make sure people who need and are eligible for help, receive it? With their response to this report, we shall find out.”

Martin Lewis, founder of MSE, said:

“As well as overpaying…too many people are being let down in regulated industries that are supposed to protect them. Firms seem to rely on tick-box exercises to help lower prices and ease burdens on the vulnerable – so they can say they’ve done them – but in a way that’s complex, confusing, under-communicated and leaves the burden on the struggling individual to help themselves. All in all, it means most people don’t get the help that’s available.

The evidence session at the powerful Public Accounts Committee seems to have done its job, and the committee has taken much of what we said on board. Hopefully its intervention can help make the language used plain English, ensure discounted social tariffs are properly publicised and stop vulnerable individuals from having to painfully divulge their personal situation multiple times. This would be a great start in improving things.

Of course, there’s more that could be done, including stopping mid-contract mobile and broadband price hikes and having a single water social tariff so it’s not a postcode lottery – but overall, this is a good outcome.”

Unfortunately one of the most contentions areas, as touched on above, reflects the issue of mid-contract price hikes from broadband and mobile providers, which doesn’t appear to have been tackled by the PAC. Ofcom’s current policies on this have improved pricing transparency (here and here), albeit at the cost of some fairness in how annual hikes are being applied.

For example, we see many larger providers applying the same flat c.£2 to £5 monthly increase each year to those who pay just c.£20 a month for their service rental and those who pay c.£100 a month – disproportionately targeting those least able to afford it. One recent study from MoneySavingExpert similarly found that consumers were paying more under Ofcom’s new system (here).

At the time of writing we haven’t yet seen the PAC’s full report, which will be published here, but we do have a summary of their key recommendations.

PAC report conclusions and recommendations

Awareness and take-up of social tariffs is low, meaning millions of eligible customers are missing out on financial support.

Ofwat and Ofcom have encouraged companies in water and broadband respectively to offer social tariffs to customers on lower incomes. Take-up of social tariffs has increased. However, only 6% of water customers in England and Wales, and fewer than 9% of eligible broadband customers, are on social tariffs. Policy in Practice, a social policy software and analytics company, estimates that the number of households missing out on social tariffs and related support could be as high as 6.1 million households in water, and 8.4 million households in broadband. Awareness remains low, with only 39% of people who need financial help from their water company aware that that this is something that they can ask for, and even lower (34%) in broadband. Customers must opt-in to receive social tariffs, but this requires customers to apply actively and to understand eligibility, which is not helped by companies using confusing terms such as “equivalised income”.

Social tariffs are not always visible on Ofcom-accredited price comparison websites, making it difficult for customers to understand the benefits of social tariffs when making a decision to switch.

Recommendation 1.

a) Within six months, in order to improve accessibility and awareness of social tariffs, Ofcom and Ofwat should complete a review of how social tariffs are advertised and communicated, including accessibility of language. They should use this review to inform and provide best practice guidance for their sectors. They should share the key findings of this review with the committee.

b) Ofcom should review its accreditation requirements for price comparison sites, so that they feature information on social tariffs in searches that helps consumers make informed choices.

The current system relies too heavily on customers in vulnerable circumstances being willing and able to repeat personal information to multiple companies.

In energy and water, companies maintain the Priority Services Register (PSR) to provide support to customers with additional communication, safety and access needs. Take-up of the PSR has increased in energy and water, though (at 13% of all households) take-up in water remains well below Ofwat’s estimate that half of households could be eligible. The system puts the burden on people in vulnerable circumstances to declare those circumstances to companies and ask for support; for example, the Consumer Council for Water (CCW) reports some good examples of water companies proactively putting people on social tariffs, but that this does not happen as standard. Customers are fearful about bringing their financial situation to their service providers’ attention, and consumers often have to tell multiple companies, and even multiple people and teams within the same company, of their circumstances, which adds to their distress. CCW research indicates that, during supply interruptions in Tunbridge Wells around Christmas 2025, half of the people on the PSR did not receive the help they expected during the incident. There are no PSR arrangements in telecoms, and Ofcom considers that the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade’s (BIST) proposal to establish a multi-sector share once register ‘could be really helpful’.

Recommendation 2.

a) Ofcom, Ofgem and Ofwat should set out a plan for encouraging companies to contact customers proactively to identify whether they should be registered for additional services, such as the PSR.

b) BIST should implement a multi-sector ‘tell us once’ PSR approach, including expanding PSR coverage to the telecoms sector, by September 2028.

Regulators have not done enough to ensure companies communicate proactively and clearly with all customers, and to make it easy for customers to contact them.

How companies communicate is as important as the information they provide. It is easy for companies to appear to be more transparent by adding ever more information and detail to bills. Only 64% of broadband customers are satisfied with how easy it is to find their companies contact details when making a complaint. Moreover, with companies increasingly using AI chatbots, some customers become stuck in a cycle of trying to ask for help. Increasing reliance on digital communication can leave behind people in vulnerable circumstances, including older people and those with disabilities of mental and physical health, who need different contact mechanisms. Each regulator sets rules and expectations regarding how companies communicate with customers. It is only very recently that the regulators have taken enforcement action against or issued penalties to companies for poor communication with customers.

Recommendation 3.

a) Within 6 months, Ofcom, Ofgem and Ofwat should report back to us setting out a plan for how they will secure improvements in suppliers’ communications with customers.

b) They should write privately to us, setting out in what circumstances and how they will use their powers more forcefully to improve suppliers’ communications with customers.

Customers in similar circumstances can receive different levels of support from their service provider.

Each regulator has its own definition of vulnerability, including financial vulnerability. In water, Ofwat requires all water companies to offer social tariffs to low-income households, whereas in broadband offering social tariffs is voluntary for most companies. Water and broadband companies have discretion over the eligibility criteria that they set. These criteria are highly inconsistent in water, with some companies basing eligibility for social tariffs on receipt of benefits, while others link eligibility to a customer’s income or to water usage. As a result, consumers in similar circumstances can experience very different outcomes depending on who their supplier is. While the average water social tariff discount amounted to 55% of average household water bills in 2024-25, there is considerable variation around that average. The extent to which water customers on social tariffs saw their bills cut ranged from £27 to £314 per household, depending on their water company. In broadband, the voluntary nature of companies’ social tariff provision also leads to variation in definitions of eligibility criteria, and therefore in financial support to low-income households.

Recommendation 4.

a) Within 6 months, Ofcom, Ofgem and Ofwat should report back to us on how they plan to make definitions of vulnerability that inform companies support to consumers more consistent.

b) Ofwat and Ofcom should work with their sponsor departments to consult on changes that would align social tariff eligibility criteria within their sectors. Drawing on the responses they receive, they should issue guidance to companies to align eligibility criteria within their sectors, and in line with their own definition of financial vulnerability.

c) BIST should work with regulators to assess the feasibility of using the PSR to identify those who may be eligible for social tariffs, with the aim that providers use this information to proactively inform and provide support to eligible customers.

Despite energy debt rising, and bills increasing, the regulators do not have a comprehensive view of the debt owed by an individual across the three sectors.

Debt is now a substantial problem. By March 2025, customers’ debt to energy supply companies and water companies totalled £7.2 billion. In energy, customer debt to energy supply companies increased in real-terms by 118% from March 2021 to March 2025. With energy and water bills set to rise further, this situation could worsen. When people are starting to struggle financially, early identification of problems and intervention, including making people aware of support available to them, can be key to preventing debts occurring, or accumulating and becoming unmanageable. For consumers struggling to pay, affordability challenges relating to paying for these services and other household spending categories are inter-connected. Ofgem-commissioned research into the causes of debt indicates that some customers may in principle be able to pay an energy bill, but would then fall into debt on other bills. However, there is currently no data sharing about an individual customer’s overall financial circumstances or receipt of social tariffs, between companies, regulators, government or other organisations. In the water sector, only 26% of households with a debt are on a repayment plan. Customers on a repayment plan typically owe around £140 less than those not on a plan.

Recommendation 5.

a. Within 6 months, Ofcom, Ofgem and Ofwat should each create a plan with DWP to help companies in their sectors identify financially vulnerable circumstances proactively, as a first step to making social tariffs a ‘default’ for the most financially vulnerable.

b. Within 12 months, BIST should assess the feasibility of developing a single central register of customer debt across the three sectors, allowing financial data to be shared between companies across sectors to identify those in need of support.

c. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) should discuss with Ofwat how it will work with water companies to increase the number of customers on debt repayment plans towards levels in other utilities.

There are gaps in the broader consumer protection landscape in water and broadband.

In the water sector, there is currently no statutorily approved ombudsman in the manner of the other regulated sectors. The Consumer Council for Water recently stopped carrying out alternative dispute resolution service, in April 2026. In its White Paper responding to the Independent Water Commission review of the water sector chaired by Sir John Cunliffe, Defra has committed to establishing an independent ombudsman. Ofwat told us that Defra is currently consulting on establishing statutory water ombudsman to support customers with complaints, but it is not clear when the ombudsman will be introduced. In the telecoms sector, on which the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) leads within government, there is no organisation with statutory responsibility for providing free advice to telecoms consumers. This leaves consumers in vulnerable circumstances with limited support when navigating the complexities of the broadband market. It is not clear why such provision exists for water and energy customers, but not broadband customers, given the role that broadband services play in allowing citizens to participate actively in the modern economy.

Recommendation 6.

a. Defra should set out its current position on the introduction of an independent ombudsman in the water sector, and a timeline for its introduction.

b. DCMS should write to the Committee setting out its position on the introduction of a statutory consumer advocate in the telecoms sector.