Families in Glasgow say years of problems with faulty boilers have left residents facing a combined energy debt of around £20,000.
Tenants at 91 Spean Street, Cathcart, joined housing union Living Rent in staging a protest at Cathcart and District Housing Association's offices on Wednesday, September 30.
Residents claim they have been paying energy bills of between £200 and £300 a month despite trying to cut back on usage, and are now demanding support from the housing association to help them challenge debts with energy suppliers.
Sar Gavin, a resident, said: "It has been a huge inconvenience to have these unreliable boilers that break down constantly, and cost an extortionate amount of money to run.
"These flats are meant to be affordable, but with bills this high it's just not.
"Having debt hanging over our heads is a horrible, depressing feeling, especially when we've all been trying to reduce our usage and speak to energy advisors.
"Our families deserve better than this. It's not fair on them either. Some families and my neighbours are always running out of hot water and the enormous stress of the bills and accumulative debt has a knock-on effect on wellbeing.
"It's simply unfair and unnecessary."
According to Living Rent, several households in the block have experienced debt-related stress, while some residents have gone periods without heating or hot water because of recurring boiler issues.
Tenants marched into the housing association's offices carrying placards and requested a meeting with board chair Marion McMillan and chief executive Christine Leitch.
Residents say the issues date back to when they moved into the development, which was built in 2020.
They claim they experienced frequent boiler breakdowns, inconsistent hot water temperatures and drops in pressure, while also receiving significantly higher energy bills than they had paid in previous homes.
Tenants sought advice from independent energy advisers in an attempt to understand the high costs, but say the cause of the problem remained unclear.
Since June this year, every boiler in the building has been replaced, with the final replacement completed on September 10.
Residents claim energy consumption and costs have improved since the replacements were carried out.
They believe this demonstrates there was a problem with the original systems and are calling on the housing association to provide documents they can use to support discussions with their energy providers over debts that built up before the replacements.
However, they say requests for an engineer's report or a letter of support have been refused.
In an email to tenants, the housing association said it "would not comment on the use of energy due to various areas such as energy pricing and personal usage".
The protest comes as households across the country prepare for another rise in energy costs, with the energy price cap increasing from October 1.
A spokesperson from Cathcart and District Housing Association said: “We have received a hand delivered letter from Living Rent, which we will respond to in due course.
"We have engaged with the tenants and Living Rent previously on the matter and will continue to do so.”
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