Why your energy bill is about to soar

Published:

24 June 2010

Topic:

News,Gas & Electricity

It's hard to start thinking about heating bills when the sun is out and the football's on, but if you're enjoying a lazy summer then you could be sleepwalking into a massive hike in your energy bills.

Loads of households have used fixed tariffs to guarantee their energy costs for a year and avoid any price hikes, but nine of those are now coming to an end, meaning thousands of homes could see their energy bills rise by as much as £165.

Not only will they be paying more than they were, they'll be paying far more than the market-leading tariffs, meaning if they switched to the best gas and electricity supplier for them, they'd save as much as £348 a year.

What's coming to an end?

If you fixed at the start of last summer then your deal could well be coming to an end any day. We've published a table of fixed rate deals and when they close, but here are the nine Big Six fixes ending soon:

Provider	Tariff name	End date
Scottish Power	Capped Price Energy July 2010	30/06/10
EDF	Annual Fix V3	30/06/10
British Gas	Price Promise June 2010	30/06/10
E.ON	Price Protection 18	01/07/10
E.ON	Fixed Price 3	01/07/10
E.ON	Energy Saver v5	01/07/10
E.ON	Energy Saver v6	01/07/10
Scottish Power	Fix 'n' Flex	04/07/10

Sourced by www.moneysupermarket.com 21.06.2010

How can I lower my energy bill?

Once your fixed rate deal comes to an end, your provider may move you onto their standard tariff. Although some of these deals are cheaper than others, they all have one thing in common - they cost much more than the providers' cheapest deals.

If you're willing to pay monthly and manage your account online, then you could save literally hundreds of pounds a year.

For example, if you're on Scottish Power's standard tariff, you're paying an average of £1,289.54 a year, but you could be paying an average of £876.44 on npower's Sign Online 18 tariff, saving an amazing £413.10.

If you don't fancy switching provider, even just switching to Scottish Power's best energy tariff, the Online Energy Reward deal, would save you £367.30 a year.

Here's what the average standard tariff is costing you and what savings you could make... Read them and weep. Then stop weeping and switch, it really is easy to do.

Provider	Average standard tariff	Average online/best tariff	Difference
British Gas	£1,157.27	£898.82 WebSaver 7	£258.85
EDF Energy	£1,158.57	£903.74 Online Saver V6	£253.81
E.ON	£1,151.63	£882.71 Fix Online V8	£268.92
npower	£1,196.33	£876.44 Sign Online 18	£319.89
Scottish Power	£1,289.54	£898.81 Online Energy Reward	£367.30
Scottish & Southern	£1,158.76	£909.00 Atlantic Online Fixed Price Sep 2011	£249.76
First Utility	£1,074.37	£889.00 iSave v3	£243.63
OVO Energy	N/A	£926.18 New Energy Fixed	N/A
Average	£1,169.50	£898.09	£271.41

Sourced by www.moneysupermarket.com/ 21.06.2010

What if I want to fix my energy bills again?

In uncertain times, some people may prefer the security of a fixed tariff, in case prices begin to creep up.

But if you want to lock into a good price, you'll want to move fast. Rumours abound that one of the best gas and electricity deals on the market, in fact, the cheapest fix rate deal going is about to end.

E.ON's FixOnline V8 has an average annual bill of £882.71 and is fixed until July next year, but it's expected to be pulled at the end of the month - meaning you have just a couple of days to take advantage.

What's the cheapest energy tariff for me?

One thing to remember is that the best price for you may not be the market-leading deal.

Your best price depends on where you are in the country, and how much gas and electricity you use, so you'll need to run a search on our energy comparison tool to find the right deal for you.

Please note: Any rates or deals mentioned in this article were available at the time of writing.

Related Links

• Read our article 'Emergency Budget at a glance'
• Read our article 'Is your fixed energy tariff about to end?'
• Compare tariffs from UK gas and electricity providers