Energy theft reports rise as tampering warnings issued
New figures show a rise in confirmed energy theft reports across England, Scotland and Wales, with commercial incidents up 276% since 2021 and warnings over dangerous tampering.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
New figures show a rise in confirmed energy theft reports across England, Scotland and Wales, prompting fresh warnings about the dangers of tampering with meters and supplies.
Energy theft generally involves bypassing a meter, tapping directly into power lines, or tampering with equipment. It is illegal and can be deadly. In 2021, two-year-old George died in a house explosion in Lancashire after neighbours were found to have tampered with their gas meter. The case was particularly tragic, but the circumstances are not isolated.
Since 2021, confirmed reports of people stealing energy have risen by more than a fifth. More than 17,500 incidents were recorded across England, Scotland and Wales last year, mainly in big cities. The problem has often been linked to organised crime.
The sharpest rise has been in commercial incidents, which are up 276 per cent since 2021. Unlike domestic customers, business customers do not benefit from an energy price cap or the most recent bills support.
Energy theft has many causes. Crimestoppers said it happens everywhere and for different reasons. Cost of living pressures may play a part, but not always. Greed is also a factor, with businesses seeking more profit and criminals stealing electricity to power cannabis farms. There have also been reports of people stealing electricity to heat hot tubs and swimming pools.
The crime carries serious penalties. It can lead to an unlimited fine or up to five years in jail. Experts say it is not victimless. One calculation suggests it adds around £50 a year to a typical household bill, because suppliers have to recover their losses.
Stay Energy Safe, part of Crimestoppers, says people can report suspicions anonymously on its website. A government spokesperson said ministers knew people were worried about their energy bills, but energy theft is illegal and ultimately puts lives at risk.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| Commercial energy theft incidents have increased by 276% since 2021. | |
| Confirmed energy theft reports have increased by more than 20% since 2021. | |
| More than 17,500 energy theft incidents were recorded across England, Scotland and Wales last year, mainly in large cities. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
BBC ONE West led its energy theft segment with the safety risk, using the 2021 Lancashire house explosion that killed two-year-old George to show how tampering can be deadly. It then moved quickly to the scale of the problem and the striking rise in commercial incidents, framing energy theft as both a crime and a cost passed on to ordinary bill payers. The report also gave space to Crimestoppers on motives, including need, greed, cannabis farms and hot tubs.
- “Energy theft generally involves bypassing a meter, tapping directly into power lines or tampering with equipment.”
- “It's illegal and incredibly dangerous sometimes even deadly.”
- “Energy theft happens everywhere and people have a whole host of different reasons.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.