Money Saving Expert founder, Martin Lewis has issued a warning to those on prepayment meters and who pays by bill ahead of January.
This comes as the new level of the energy price guarantee from January has now been confirmed. The price cap is set to. rise to £4,279 per year for a typical household, from its current level of £3,549 - although no one pays this currently due to the price guarantee that brought typical bills down to typical bills to £2,500.
While the price cap will stay in place, the financial guru has warned that although most customers won't notice a difference, some will as the discount in January will be 31.8p per kilowatt hour (kWh) for electricity (up from 17p/kWh) and 6.4p/kWh for gas (up from 4.2p/kWh).
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This means that some people on prepayment meters will see a small rise in costs of around one per cent and and those who pay by bill will see an increase on 1.6 per cent. It doesn't seem much, but energy and food costs are already the highest they've been in 40 years and for many, every penny counts.
Martin said on moneysavingexpert.com: "The energy price guarantee was meant to guarantee prices until the end of March (when we know the cost people pay will increase by 20 per cent). So it will come as a surprise to many to see prices change in January.
"For most people the change will be trivial, but it is disappointing to see more substantial increases, with some on prepay meters seeing rises of 1 per cent, which include most of the poorest in society. I have already been in touch with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to ask if this can be looked at, as it does not seem fair.
"The bump up for those who pay in receipt of bills takes the premium for paying that way to more than 10% over direct debit – so while many like the extra control, it's important to be aware that with typical bills from January you'll pay £260 a year for it."
There are still no cheap tariffs or deals to switch to different providers at the moment. Martin advises people to check they are paying the correct amount via Direct Debit, speak to the energy provider and charities if they are struggling to pay and try to reduce energy usage as much as possible.
Before the energy price guarantee was announced, the money saving expert founder admitted that he was "out of tools" to provide the public to help save cash as the cost of living soared to a 40-year record high.
The energy price guarantee is in place until April 2023 and will then be reviewed.
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