FUEL AND ELECTRICITY BILLS SET TO RISE FOR MOST PEOPLE BY £149 TODAY

From today, fuel and electricity bills will rise by £149 a year, or around £12 a month, for about 27 million homes in England, Wales and Scotland.

Those using standard gas and electricity will now see their yearly bill increase from an average of £1,568 to £1,717 for a normal duel-fuel (both gas and electric) household in Great Britain paying by direct debit.

Set by the industry regulator Ofgem every three months, the energy price cap for October to December will therefore increase by 10%. This is due to a rise in wholesale energy costs and comes just as the days are starting to get shorter and colder and heating is being switched on. Under the cap, prices have fallen twice this year, in April and July.

Thinktank the Resolution Foundation's research found that 7.7 million households will probably struggle to heat their homes this winter. It warns that 37% of all households, and 77% of single-parent households, are at risk of 'fuel stress' as well. Ofgem said nearly £3.7bn of debt has been accumulated by households to their suppliers.

What does the price increase mean for me?

Customers are urged to submit a meter reading to their supplier so that they can avoid being charged at a higher rate.

Price comparison website Uswitch says customers can therefore avoid a short-term charge for energy they haven't used. Smart meters automatically take an energy-usage reading.

According to Ofgem, these are the rates:

Electricity rates

  • If you are on a standard variable tariff (default tariff, where the energy price changes every three months) and pay for your electricity by direct debit, you will pay on average 24.50 pence including VAT per kilowatt hour (kWh). This is up from 22.36p.
  • The daily standing charge - a fixed daily charge covering the costs of connecting to a supply - is 60.99 pence per day, though that varies by region.

Gas rates

  • If you are on a standard variable tariff (default tariff) and pay for your gas by Direct Debit, you will pay on average 6.24 pence including VAT per kilowatt hour (kWh). This is up from 5.48p.
  • The daily standing charge is 31.66 pence per day, though that varies by region.

The Resolution Foundation urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer to 'do more to support vulnerable households' no longer eligible for winter fuel payments, as well as those who were never going to receive that payment in the first place. The government has faced strong criticism for cutting the payment, worth up to £300, and only granting it to those on low incomes who receive certain benefits.

Steve Vaid, chief executive of the Money Advice Trust, the charity that runs National Debtline, commented: 'This only highlights what we have been saying for some time - without urgent support for households facing unaffordable arrears, energy debt will only rise further.'

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2024-10-01T15:31:58Z dg43tfdfdgfd