A “POSTCODE LOTTERY” of social tariffs is leaving households missing out on almost £2 billion worth of support to pay their essential bills, a report has found.

In research published today, Citizens Advice found identical households are receiving “completely different” levels of support depending on where they live because of a lack of consistency and effort to promote social tariffs among suppliers.

The service warned that badly designed social tariffs with “patchwork” support available in different areas were falling short in keeping people connected to essential services.

A low-income household could be missing out on an average saving of at least £350 a year, it said, with £1.9bn sitting unclaimed across water and broadband schemes alone.

The advisory service said the government could take “immediate” action “without spending a penny” by ensuring suppliers proactively offer social tariffs to their low-income customers.

Citizens Advice chief executive Dame Clare Moriarty said: “Solutions to this are hiding in plain sight.

“Putting money back into the pockets of people who need it most starts with the government ending unfair postcode lotteries in social tariffs and putting the onus on suppliers to ensure that people are getting the help they’re entitled to.”