The number of people struggling to keep up with the cost of energy continues to grow, and according to the National Fuel Poverty Monitoring Centre, more than 5 million French households are currently affected. This figure stands at 2.3 million in the UK, and throughout Europe it is estimated that 50-150 million people are affected. To help combat fuel poverty, EDF is working in close partnership with local public, private and voluntary sector stakeholders.

In France, EDF supports the initiatives launched by the government:

• EDF has created an Essential Energy Tariff  that grants users a discount on their electricity bill. In 2014, 2.4 million EDF customer households were eligible for this tariff, enjoying an average annual saving of €103 inc. tax
• EDF donates €23 million to the French housing solidarity fund (Fonds de Solidarité pour le Logement), thereby helping more than 200,000 households to pay part of their energy bill. EDF is the biggest private contributor to the FSL for local authorities

In the UK, all energy suppliers must provide financial support to state assistance for poor households:

• EDF Energy contributes £29.6 million to the “Warm Home Discount” programme that has reduced the energy bills of 211,000 low-income households
• EDF’s British subsidiary is involved in the ECO (Energy Companies Obligation) programme designed to fund improved energy efficiency, with a contribution of £150 million for priority customers in 2013-2015

Beyond our regulatory obligations, EDF and its subsidiaries have created assistance mechanisms for customers struggling to keep up with their fuel costs, by consolidating the way we work or calling upon the expertise of dedicated partners:

• In France, 5,500 customer advisors delivered 513,000 offers of “Energy Support” in 2014, a comprehensive service that includes energy-saving advice, special payment options, checks on energy-use data, payment schedule revisions and referrals to social services
• EDF is involved in social mediation services like Multi-Service Mediation and Information Points (PIMMS) to facilitate access to public services for people in difficulty
• Dalkia supports local authorities in identifying households suffering from fuel poverty. It offers a special support plan that combines financial support, progressive pricing and energy coaching
• In the UK, EDF Energy launched an online individual assistance service in 2014, and works in partnership with various voluntary sector organisations (Plymouth Citizens Advice Bureau, National Energy Action, EDF Energy Trust Fund, IncomeMAX, etc.) to help customers in need
• In Hungary, EDF Demasz has sealed a partnership with the Order of St John to support those in need, in particular through the installation of prepaid meters for 6,500 customers

EDF and its subsidiaries are working to reduce the energy bills of the poorest members of society by supporting programmes that make energy saving improvements to homes:

• “Toits d’abord”: a programme from the Abbé Pierre Foundation that has already made energy saving improvements to 1,300 social housing units and created energy-efficient hotels to accommodate families
• “Habiter mieux” from the French National Housing Agency (ANAH): EDF contributed €32 million to the programme in 2014 (€29 million per year for 2015-2017). This programme resulted in energy saving improvements to almost 50,000 homes in 2014
• “London Warm Zone” (replacing boilers in 14 poor neighbourhoods) and “Newham Warm Zone”, designed to help customers in need to reduce their energy bills. Two programmes to which the British subsidiary, EDF Energy, is a contributor
• The housing renovation programme from the HEC business school’s “Enterprise and Poverty” think tank, which boasts a specific business model: building additional housing in apartment blocks funds the renovation of existing apartments