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British Gas reviews, tariffs and information

British Gas is part of the Centrica Group, which was formed following the merger of British Gas plc in 1997. British Gas also operates under the name Scottish Gas in Scotland.
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British Gas 2022 customer rating

British Gas was rated two and half stars out of five for Customer Service by customers in the 2022 independent survey of more than 16,000 UK households. British Gas reviews were collected by Uswitch and YouGov in the biggest survey of its kind.

British Gas tariffs and prices

As one of the leading energy suppliers in the UK, there are a range of British Gas tariffs available to meet the needs of as many customers as possible.

How British Gas prices have changed in 2021

Like most energy suppliers in the UK, British Gas is subject to the Ofgem price cap, which sets the maximum price that can be charged for British Gas' standard tariff. These types of standard variable or default tariffs tend to be more expensive than fixed plans, and are usually not the cheapest British Gas tariffs available.

The cap was set at its highest ever level of £1,971 in February 2022 due to high wholesale price - this came into effect in April. British Gas subsequently set its SVT rate at £1970.56.

In August 2021, the Ofgem price cap level was increased to £1,277 per year, the second time in a year it had increased, and now at its highest ever point. British Gas therefore increased the price of its standard variable tariff to £1,277 to come into effect on 1 October 2021.

This followed a 9% increase in British Gas prices from 1 April 2021, also in line with the energy price cap level.

The table below shows recent changes to British Gas standard tariff prices, alongside changes by the rest of the big six energy suppliers:

SupplierStandard variable tariff price (1 Apr 2021)Standard variable tariff price (1 Oct 2021)Standard variable tariff price (1 Apr 2022)
British Gas£1,138.18£1,277.38£1,970.56
EDF£1,138£1,277.23£1,970.44
E.ON£1,138.18£1,277.38£1,970.56
E.ON Next (inc. former npower customers)£1,138.18£1,277.38£1,970.56
ScottishPower£1,138£1,277£1,970.53
SSE£1,137£1,276£1,969.71

Based on a medium energy user on a standard dual fuel tariff, paying on receipt of bill, with bill sizes averaged across all regions.

Previous changes to British Gas prices

In August 2020, British Gas prices were reduced by 7% for customers on standard variable or default tariffs, in line with a reduction in Ofgem's energy price cap level. The price change came into effect in October 2020, and translated into an average £82 price drop for customers on the British Gas' standard tariff.

In February 2020, there was a price drop for British Gas' standard tariff customers, also in response to a drop in the price cap. This price drop was effective from April 2020.

In August 2019, British Gas prices dropped by 6% on standard variable tariffs, also in response to a reduction in the energy price cap. The new rates came into force on 1 October 2019.

This price drop followed an increase in February 2019 when the supplier announced it would be raising prices for around four million customers on the British Gas standard tariff by 10%, effective 1 April 2019. The supplier increased its rates to the new energy price cap level of £1,254.

In April 2018, British Gas prices rose by 5.5% on dual fuel standard variable rate tariffs, effective 29 May 2018.

The increase put the price of British Gas' standard tariff at £369 above the cheapest energy deal on the market at the time of announcement.

Read more about British Gas's price change history.

British Gas and Bluegreen and Zebra Energy

When Bluegreen and Zebra Energy both went bust in October 2021, British Gas was appointed to take on their respective customer bases of approximately 5,900 and 14,800.

British Gas and People's Energy

British Gas took on the 350,000 domestic and 1,000 business customers of People's Energy when the supplier went bust in September 2021.

British Gas and PfP and MoneyPlus

British Gas took on the customers of PfP and MoneyPlus when the two energy suppliers went out of business in September 2021. This totalled around 96,600 customers.

British Gas and Robin Hood Energy/Ebico

British Gas took on the customers of Robin Hood Energy, as well as its partners including Ebico. Robin Hood and Ebico's 112,000 customers were transferred to British Gas tariffs as part of the sale of the companies in September 2020.

British Gas and Breeze Energy

British Gas was appointed by energy regulator Ofgem to take on the customers of Breeze Energy when the small supplier ceased trading. Breeze Energy's 18,000 customers were transferred to British Gas tariffs from December 2019.

British Gas renewable energy

British Gas energy tariffs include various plans that feature renewable energy as a selling point. These green tariffs come in the form of offsetting carbon use (by funding projects dedicated to reducing carbon emissions) when customers buy gas, or matching electricity consumption by purchasing electricity generated from renewable sources.

Is British Gas going bust?

The energy market is challenging and unpredictable at the moment and there is a certain level of risk to some suppliers - find out why in our energy market Q&A guide.

Read more:

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