Millions of families could be spared from fuel poverty under new proposals to cut energy bills for the most vulnerable.
Fresh research suggests a special social tariff for energy customers would offer better protection than current Government schemes.
Public opinion strongly backs the idea, with 67 per cent of citizens supporting the creation of such a tariff, according to polling conducted by Strand Partners among 1,014 UK adults in early September.
The scheme would focus on households with unavoidable high energy use, such as elderly residents, people with disabilities and families in overcrowded housing.
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Ovo is calling for greater collaboration between Government and industry to identify customers in need, using data already available from public and private sources.
The research outlined three potential approaches to delivering the tariff.
The first model would retain the £2.25billion currently spent on the Warm Home Discount and Winter Fuel Payment but deliver better results.
This approach could cut fuel poverty by 12 per cent, benefiting more than one million families.
Ovo has urged closer cooperation between Government and industry to identify households in need, making use of existing public and private data
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A broader graduated tariff system could achieve a 19 per cent reduction in fuel poverty.
When combined with higher minimum energy efficiency standards for rental properties announced last year, the impact could even rise to 26 per cent.
The most ambitious proposal involves a highly targeted tariff to eliminate the typical fuel poverty shortfall for the poorest 20 per cent of households.
This approach could cut fuel poverty by 42 per cent, directly supporting those in the deepest hardship.
A study for Ovo by Green Alliance found cheaper energy rates for vulnerable households would beat current Government schemes
| PAAt present, nine million households in England face fuel poverty, more than during the height of the energy crisis.
These families spend over 10 per cent of their post-housing income on heating and powering their homes.
The financial burden has worsened sharply, with fuel-poor households now needing an extra £407 a year to escape poverty in 2024 — a 62 per cent increase compared with 2020.
The Warm Home Discount focuses mainly on households on means-tested benefits, leaving many low-income families with no help despite struggling to cover energy bills.
The report warned that current programmes have failed to keep pace with inflation and provide only limited relief for those spending excessive sums on gas and electricity.
David Buttress, Ovo's chief executive, said: "Families cannot keep living on a knife edge, worrying how they will afford their bills each winter.
"With gas prices still volatile, this crisis will not fix itself. The Government has the power to change things, but only if it acts now to deliver a progressive and targeted social tariff."
Green Alliance executive director Shaun Spiers echoed the warning: "Everyone has a right to a warm home in winter yet nine million households in England are still struggling to afford their energy bills following the fossil fuel price shock."
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People on means-tested benefits are set to automatically received the £150 Warm Home Discount | GETTYHe added: "A social tariff could better protect households from volatile energy prices, which are a particular problem for those with low disposable incomes or unable to reduce their energy demand.
"With the increasingly unstable geopolitical environment affecting fossil fuel prices, there has never been a better time to ensure struggling households are properly insulated from volatile energy prices with a social tariff and warm home policies."
Campaigners argue that without urgent reform, millions more households risk falling into fuel poverty as energy prices remain volatile.
The report urges the Government to act swiftly and warns that delays will leave vulnerable families exposed.