Energy Bills and the Price Cap news, page 8
- August 2024
Ofgem publishes standing charges options paper
Ofgem has published an options paper on reducing domestic standing charges by £20 to £100 a year and asked suppliers to offer no or low standing charge tariffs, with feedback open until 20 September 2024.
Ofgem sets price cap for 1 October to 31 December 2024
Ofgem has set the energy price cap for 1 October to 31 December 2024 at £1717 a year for a typical Direct Debit household, a 10% rise, and opened a consultation on standing charges.
Cornwall Insight predicts October price cap rise for typical households
Cornwall Insight has predicted that the October price cap will rise by around 10 per cent, adding approximately £150 a year to the bills of a typical dual fuel household, with Ofgem due to confirm the level on 23 August.
Nesta launches project on rebalancing energy levies
Nesta has begun an ongoing project examining how shifting policy levies between electricity and gas bills would affect UK households, with findings due to inform debate on cheaper electricity.
Ofgem published an options paper on ways to reduce standing charges
Ofgem set out options for cutting the daily standing charge in an August 2024 paper, part of a review that later produced a lower standing charge tariff requirement and a pilot.
Ofgem sets Quarter 4 2024 price cap at £1,717
Ofgem announced in August 2024 that the energy price cap for Quarter 4 2024 would be £1,717, an increase of £149 on the Quarter 3 2024 cap of £1,568.
Supplier allowed profit margins to rise 11% under new cap
Ofgem has raised the energy price cap by 10% from 1 October, taking a typical household bill in England, Scotland and Wales to £1,717, while the profit margins suppliers are allowed to make rise 11%.
- July 2024
Energy UK publishes policy proposals for affordable bills this winter
Energy UK has proposed funding energy efficiency schemes from general taxation, shifting policy costs onto gas bills and doubling the Warm Home Discount to cut household bills this winter.
Big Energy Credit Claim Back campaign set to end
The Big Energy Credit Claim Back campaign, which saw more than 20,000 customers reclaim unused credit from suppliers, ends on 1 July as households begin saving again for winter.
Energy Price Guarantee ceased applying to tariffs
The Energy Price Guarantee stopped applying to tariffs on 1 July 2024, ending the scheme that capped supplier rates and required landlords to pass on discounts to tenants.
- June 2024
Cornwall Insight forecasts October 2024 price cap rise to £1,724
Cornwall Insight forecasts issued on 28 June 2024 point to the Ofgem price cap rising by more than £150 to £1,724 from October, ending the summer's small reduction.
- May 2024
Citizens Advice responds to Ofgem's call for input on the future of domestic price protection
Citizens Advice has told Ofgem that time-of-use tariffs expected after marketwide half hourly settlement bring new risks, and that default tariff consumers still need protection.
Ofgem confirms energy price cap for July to September 2024
Ofgem has confirmed the energy price cap will fall by 7% from 1 July to 30 September 2024, giving a typical dual fuel direct debit household an annual bill of £1,568.
Ofgem price cap falls but bills remain far above pre-crisis levels
Analysis from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit finds average annual dual fuel bills remain around 40 per cent, or £450, above pre-crisis levels even as the Ofgem price cap falls.
NEA responds to DESNZ call for evidence on default energy tariffs
National Energy Action has told the government that the price cap's consumer benefits should be kept while reform tackles multi-rate meters and a social tariff is consulted on.
Ofgem opens consultation on energy price cap operating cost allowances review
Ofgem has opened a consultation on how it sets the operating cost allowances inside the energy price cap, covering core costs, debt, smart metering and industry charges, with responses due by 14 June 2024.
Big Energy Credit Claim Back campaign launched
The Warm This Winter coalition's Big Energy Credit Claim Back campaign drew more than 20,000 sign-ups and an average reclaim of £330, as polling found 68 per cent of bill payers want credit returned automatically.
Ofgem publishes benchmark maximum charges for Charge Restriction Period 12b
Ofgem has published the regional benchmark maximum charges for gas and electricity under the default tariff cap for Charge Restriction Period 12b, with all values given exclusive of VAT.
- April 2024
EDF launches Essentials 1Yr May25 fixed tariff
EDF has launched Essentials 1Yr May25, a one-year fixed tariff priced at £1,580, which it says is £110 below the current price cap and the cheapest offered by any large supplier.
Cornwall Insight projects price cap rise in Q4 2024 and Q1 2025
Cornwall Insight projections published by EDF show the price cap falling to £1,560 in Q3 2024, then rising to £1,631 in Q4 2024 and £1,634 in Q1 2025.
2024 Flexi Product variable charges take their 1 April 2024 values
ScottishPower has published the component unit rates and standing charges that make up its Flexi Product variable costs from 1 April 2024, with a second set of values shown for 1 October 2024.
Additional £735m energy debt charge takes effect under Ofgem rules
Ofgem's additional £735m bad debt allowance took effect on 1 April 2024, adding £28 a year to the typical household bill on top of £842m already charged.
Climate Change Levy main rates change for gas and solid fuels
From 1 April 2024 the main Climate Change Levy rate on gas rises to match the frozen electricity rate, with solid fuel rates raised proportionally and LPG left frozen.
Energy Price Guarantee replaced by levelisation scheme
The Energy Price Guarantee's prepayment unit rate discount was replaced on 1 April 2024 by a non-volumetric payment levelisation scheme that shifts costs between payment methods.
Gas network costs charged to households rise 38% from 1 April 2024
The estimated annual household contribution to running the gas network rose from £118.53 in 2021 to £163.69 from 1 April 2024, a 38% increase, according to a Warm This Winter report.
Market Stabilisation Charge to be removed
The Market Stabilisation Charge, a temporary levy paid between suppliers when customers switch, is to be removed in April 2024, Energy UK has said in an explainer on price cap cost recovery.
Ofgem began reviewing permanent removal of prepayment premium
Ofgem began work in April 2024 on options to remove the prepayment meter price premium for good, after a temporary ban on charging prepayment customers more took effect in July 2023.
Ofgem confirms technical changes to price cap wholesale model taking effect from April 2024
Ofgem has confirmed technical changes to the wholesale cost allowance model used to set the energy price cap, taking effect from April 2024, and decided against adjusting the cap for 2022 to 2023 wholesale costs.
Ofgem price cap from April 2024 puts poorly insulated homes around £340 a year worse off on gas bills
Analysis from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit finds that under Ofgem's April 2024 price cap, homes rated EPC band F pay around £340 a year more for gas than band C homes.
OVO electricity standing charge rises to 60.31p per day
A customer on the OVO community forum reports their electricity standing charge rising from 43.39p per day in 2023 to 60.31p per day from 1 April 2024, and asks why.