Energy bills to rise another 25%
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| Burning cash (c) PA Photos |
Just months after the big six energy providers raised their prices, the cost of gas and electricity bills is set to soar again – now by as much as 25%. Find out how you can reduce the amount you pay for your bills
Concerns over gas supplies and the rising cost of oil will send power prices soaring by as much as 25% this summer, experts are warning.
This increase in the cost of gas and electricity would push the annual average for energy bills up £262 to £1,310.
The news comes after the big six energy suppliers – E.ON, npower, British Gas, EDF Energy, ScottishPower, and Scottish and Southern Energy – raised prices by around 15% earlier this year.
The average annual household bill has already risen by £136 since the start of the year to £1,048, according to price comparison and switching service uSwitch.com.
But wholesale prices for gas and electricity have since risen by about a third, with it highly likely that suppliers will soon pass these costs onto their customers.
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Further poverty
The forecast price rise will especially worry the 4.5 million households which independent consumer group Energywatch estimates are already suffering from “fuel poverty” – when 10% or more of their disposable income goes toward paying energy bills.
Allan Asher, chief executive of Energywatch says another one million households will face fuel poverty if prices rise by as much as expected, with pensioners and others on low incomes the most likely to suffer.
New research by uSwitch.com has revealed that 6.8 million households are in debt to their energy supplier. The average debt is £114, which would be enough to prevent you from switching suppliers.
Citizens Advice has reported to gas and electricity regulator Ofgem that energy debt cases have risen by a third. Ofgem has already reported that two million households are on debt repayment programmes to energy suppliers.
by Martin Pegan, 21 April 2008
