Earlier this month, Martin Lewis encouraged every energy customer paying their bills by Direct Debit to take a meter reading on the last day of March - just 24 hours before millions of households across the UK will see gas and electricity prices rise by 54 per cent.
The consumer champion said: “If you pay by monthly Direct Debit, I’d urge you to do a meter reading on 31st March, the day before the 54% rise in the April price cap.
“You need to draw a line in the sand with your energy provider, so that you’re saying ‘everything I’ve used up to this point should be charged the cheap rate’, rather than just letting it estimate what you’ve used in March and what you’ve used at the higher rate.”
And now, the experts at GoCompare Energy have explained why this meter reading warning should not be ignored.
In February this year, Ofgem increased the energy price cap by £693 to £1,971, up from the previous cap that was £1,277 - this increase will come into force on April 1st, 2022.
Gareth Kloet, GoCompare’s energy spokesperson warns: “Until April 1st this year, energy costs per unit will still be in line with the previous price cap of £1,277 - so when this increases on April 1st some people will be paying more than half again for the cost of their energy.
“So, it’s absolutely worth taking a meter reading before these increases come into effect. By doing this, it simply means your energy company cannot charge you at the higher rate for any units that have been used prior to April 1st.”
He continued: “The cost-of-living crisis is hitting everyone, so if there’s a way to shave money off your bills this April, we would urge all bill payers to take both gas and electricity meter readings on March 31st and make sure you submit these to your supplier.”
GoCompare’s energy comparison service was paused in September 2021 due to the restricted number of tariffs available on the market.
Gareth explained: “Traditionally, if energy prices are on the increase, we would tell people to switch and save on their energy but at the moment, there aren’t any competitive deals available for people to compare. We hope to be able to offer this service again soon but in the meantime, this is one way people can still try to save on their energy costs.”
The energy price cap is determined by Ofgem and is reviewed by the regulator every six months. It was introduced in 2019 to ensure that households will always pay a fair price for their gas and electricity bills.
GoCompare has a list of practical things that you can do to save on your energy costs in the home which can be found here.
To keep up to date with the energy crisis, join our Money Saving Scotland Facebook group here, follow Record Money on Twitter here, or subscribe to our twice weekly newsletter here.
