Families in difficulties with commercial power utilities can turn to the distribution network manager for social provision or to install pre-paid metres. The number of those metres in service rose from about 35,800 last year to more than 38,200 now. Last year, 70,000 people appeared in front of the Local Advice Committee for a decision on whether to cut off their power supply, and 60,000 applied for help in arranging debt payment schedules.

A similar trend is seen in rent arrears, the VVSG found, though exact figures from earlier periods are not available: in the past year, more than 10,000 families have been threatened with eviction for non-payment of rent.

The economic crisis is partly to blame, but the trend goes back further. Benefits (and some wages) in Belgium lie below the poverty line, the organisation claims, and need to be increased. “It seems to me unworthy of a society to pay benefits to people that are too low for them to pay their basic costs,” said VVSG’s Nathalie Debast.

The private housing market is the only recourse for many families who are unable to obtain social housing due to shortages, but it’s becoming too expensive for them to afford. At the same time, energy prices are constantly rising. OCMWs, meanwhile, need not only more resources but also the ability to reach families who are having difficulties but are not aware of the steps they can take to find relief.

“More proactive work needs to be done,” Debast said. The organisation called, among other measures, for the automatic granting of benefits to those who are eligible, without claimants needing to apply. It also urged the Flemish government to give more support to OCMWs to make their services more accessible.

• Meanwhile, families in Flanders who are having financial problems are either postponing important medical treatments or going into debt to pay for them, according to research carried out by the Christian Mutual Society (CM).

People with chronic medical conditions, which are often at the root of financial problems, routinely decline to buy new glasses or visit the dentist. However, in tougher times, they may also put off a visit to the doctor or a specialist, because they know they will not be able to afford medicines. “This research shows that there are too many holes in the safety net,” said CM chair Marc Justaert.

www.vvsg.be