Group of sheltered housing residents in Bristol refuse to pay energy bills after price hike

• Watch Max Walsh's report

A group of residents living in sheltered housing in Bristol have stopped paying their energy bills after they doubled last year.

The tenants who live in Garden Close, which is run by Brunelcare, say they have experienced sleepless nights as a result of a price hike in December. They have not paid their full bill for four months.

Robin Sykes said: "It's just untenable really. People cannot afford that. It's ludicrous. People were in tears and really distressed."

Mr Sykes said the residents have been badly affected by the energy crisis because they pay their bills via Brunelcare at a wholesale price.

Resident Alana Harris said: "We know things have gone up but we expected to pay another £10-£15, instead we've had a £250 increase, we just cannot sustain it. I've had sleepless nights. It's not right."

The chief executive of Brunelcare says they are bringing in changes to help residents of Garden Close in April, which will allow them to have more control of their bills.

Oona Goldsworthy said: "We've always bought our energy on the wholesale market and we've always got a really good deal. But after Ukraine and the cost of living crisis that all changed. So actually we're in the opposite position, in that we were paying more for our energy than most domestic customers.

"We're not an energy provider. We could have taken the decision to subsidise people's energy bills over winter. But quite frankly we could not afford to do it, and as a charity we would have been in jeopardy."

The residents say they will keep refusing to pay their bills until they receive the £400 in government support which they are all eligible for.