245. Deputy Ciarán Ahern asked the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment whether all households registered as vulnerable in Ireland, including renters, are afforded the same protections against disconnection; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59341/26]

The Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) sets out the minimum service requirements, including customer protection measures for all domestic households, including renters, that energy suppliers must adhere to in the CRU Supplier Handbook. These rules are in place to ensure that customers experience a high standard of protection when interacting with energy suppliers. A Code of Practice on Vulnerable Customers is also in place.

The definition of Vulnerable Customers is set out in Regulation 2 of Statutory Instrument No. 463 of 2011. Under this Regulation, energy suppliers must establish and maintain:

a Priority Services Register of customers critically dependent on electrically powered equipment, which shall include but is not limited to life protecting devices; assistive technologies to support independent living; and medical equipment; and

a Special Services Register of customers particularly vulnerable to disconnection during Winter months for reasons of advanced age or physical, sensory, intellectual or mental health challenges.

Current best practice as conducted by suppliers allows customers to self-register as ‘priority vulnerable’ (those customers dependent on life protective equipment), or ‘special-services vulnerable’ (those customers who require additional protection from being unduly affected during the Winter months). A supplier may require a customer to demonstrate eligibility for inclusion on their register which may necessitate the provision of medical confirmation of vulnerability.

Each year, the CRU carries out a review on the effectiveness of customer protection measures over the past Winter, as well as deciding the measures to be retained for the forthcoming winter. The Review for 2025/2026 was published in September of last year and set out the range of customer protections in place for this Winter, including:

a disconnection moratorium for reasons of non-payment of account for special services registered vulnerable customers which remained in place from 1 November 2025 to 31 March 2026, while the moratorium for priority services registered customers will remain in place all year;

suppliers are required to ensure that all customers with a financial hardship meter are placed on the most economic or cheapest tariff. This includes a tariff that might otherwise only be available to, for example, a new customer or a customer as a retention offer; and

promotion by energy suppliers of the vulnerable customer register.

The CRU will confirm enhanced customer protection measures for Winter 26/27 in due course.

The customer protections are complemented by the supplier-led Energy Engage Code that provides a further level of security for domestic electricity and gas customers. This Code encourages customers, who are having difficulty in paying a bill, to engage with their supplier regarding the management of debt. Under this Code, suppliers will not disconnect customers who engage with them and must provide every opportunity to customers to avoid disconnection.

The CRU provides a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members, which enables them to raise questions on general energy regulatory matters at oireachtas@cru.ie