Households face price hike of up to £193 as energy plans end next week

Consumers on 16 popular fixed energy deals could see bills rise by up to £193 a year unless they take action to switch tariffs, Uswitch.com warned today. Customers on fixed deals that expire at the end of September and October could otherwise be automatically transferred onto a more expensive roll-over tariff, resulting in an average rise of £116 a year.

Tom Lyon, energy expert at Uswitch.com, says: “Fixed deals give consumers certainty about what they pay for their energy and protect against any unexpected price hikes. But several fixed plans are expiring – just when we are about to put the heating back on. If no action is taken consumers could end up with a bill increase of as much as £193 a year. With the nights already starting to draw in, now is the perfect time to switch and save money before temperatures drop.

“Small suppliers have consistently given the big six a run for their money this year by offering some of the cheapest deals on the market – with some at less than £1,000.  For example, Extra Energy’s ‘Fresh Fixed Price Oct 2015’, allows you to lock into a deal of £990 a year, while First Utility’s ‘iSave Fixed October 2015’ plan costs £992, also fixed until October 2015. Alternatively, EDF Energy’s ‘Blue+Price Promise March 2016’ tariff offers security until March 2016 at an average cost of £1,039 per year.

“By planning ahead, customers can avoid being rolled over onto a potentially more expensive tariff, and instead find a better deal before the cold weather starts to bite.”

Snapshot of fixed plans coming to an end in September:

Source: Uswitch.com. Based on a medium user customer using 3,200 kWh of electricity and 13,500 kWh of gas, on a dual fuel plan, paying by monthly Direct Debit, with bill sizes averaged across all regions.

Snapshot of fixed plans coming to an end in October:

| Plan name | Plan end date | Average current bill size | Average roll-over tariff bill size |

Difference

| | British Gas’ Fixed Price October 2014 | 31.10.2014 | £1,066 | £1,193 | £127 | | Npower’s Online Price Fix October 2014 | 31.10.2014 | £1,052 | £1,205 | £153 | | Npower’s Energy Online October 2014 | 31.10.2014 | £1,033 | £1,205 | £172 | | Sainsbury’s Energy Online October 2014 | 31.10.2014 | £1,002 | £1,193 | £191 | | Scottish Power’s Online Fixed Price Energy November 2014 | 31.10.2014 | £1,078 | £1,189 | £111 | | Scottish Power’s Platinum Fixed Price Energy November 2014 Online NSC | 31.10.2014 | £1,163 | £1,189 | £25 | | Scottish Power’s Fixed Price Energy November 2014 Online | 31.10.2014 | £1,037 | £1,189 | £151 | | Scottish Power’s Unifi Fixed Energy November 2014 | 31.10.2014 | £1,144 | £1,199 | £55 | | SSE’s Discount Bonus Oct 2014 | 01.10.2014 | £1,079 | £1,186 | £107 | | | Average cost increase | £121 |

Source: Uswitch.com. Based on a medium user customer using 3,200 kWh of electricity and 13,500 kWh of gas, on a dual fuel plan, paying by monthly Direct Debit, with bill sizes averaged across all regions.

Snapshot of the ‘best-buy’ fixed price energy deals:

Source: Uswitch.com. Based on a medium user customer using 3,200 kWh of electricity and 13,500 kWh of gas, on a dual fuel plan, paying by monthly Direct Debit, with bill sizes averaged across all regions.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Jason Wakeford

Phone: 0203 872 5612

Email: jason.wakeford@uswitch.com

Twitter: @UswitchPR

Notes to editors

1. Based on a medium user customer using 3,200 kWh of electricity and 13,500 kWh of gas, on a dual fuel plan, paying by monthly Direct Debit, with bill size averaged across all regions. 2. When a plan ends energy suppliers are required to roll customers onto their cheapest evergreen tariff with the same payment method and online account management preferences as their existing tariff. This has been taken into account when calculating the average cheapest evergreen tariff bill size in the table.

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