Recommendation 16

Time-of-use tariffs that allow customers to optimise the benefits of low carbon technologies such as heat pumps, electric vehicles and solar panels are welcome additions to the retail market, rewarding customers with low energy prices and supporting flexibility of the energy system. However, they are mostly designed for affluent consumers, and those with smart meters and high levels of digital literacy. Without measures to protect vulnerable consumers, such as a social tariff and improved adoption of technology including smart meters, this threatens to create a retail market that deepens societal inequalities. Such tariffs must not be a substitute for lowering the costs of energy for everyone. (Conclusion, Paragraph 58)