Martin Lewis is urging around one million people on a fixed energy tariff from last year to check how much they will now be paying after Ofgem’s new price cap started earlier this month. The energy regulator introduced the cap of £2,074 on July 1, which immediately replaced the UK Government’s £2,500 Energy Price Guarantee.
In a special edition of the Martin Lewis Money Show Live on STV dedicated to the current mortgage crisis, the consumer champion squeezed in an important message to households currently on an energy fix. He warned that despite the lower energy cap, those who moved on to a fixed tariff, up to a year ago, may actually see bills go up this month - and explained how to quickly bring them back down.
The founder of MoneySavingExpert.com told viewers: “Anybody on an energy fix, you need to check if your price has gone up.” Martin went on to explain how those on a “costly fix” lost the protection of the UK Government’s Energy Price Guarantee subsidy on July 1 and costs will now have gone back up.
Martin continued: “Check if the rate you pay for your fix has risen and risen substantially. If so, it’s likely that you’ll pay more than the price cap. There could be a million people in this situation.”
Daily standing charges
Martin then displayed a handy graphic showing the average current price cap rates for those paying by Direct Debit.
Electric
- Standing charge: 53.0p per day
- Unit rate: 30.1p/kwh
Gas
- Standing charge: 29.1p per day
- Unit rate: 7.5p/kwh
It’s important to note the amount paid varies by region, but it should give a rough idea of the potential increase in bill costs.
Martin said: “If they’ve gone up, most people should switch to the cap - they do factor in any early exit penalties - once you’re on the price cap then you might want to look at whether you fix again.
“Anyone on a fix generally a year ago - between 18 months and nine months ago - that would be the core time when you’re probably on a costly fix.”
You can catch up with The Martin Lewis Money Show Live on the STV Player.
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