Ofgem has lowered the price cap by around 12% for domestic energy bills, the End Fuel Poverty Coalition has said1. The new cap level takes effect for the period from 1 April 2024, when the average household energy bill falls to £1,690, down £238 from £1,9281. The coalition, which campaigns on fuel poverty, published the figure alongside its own calculation of what the energy bills crisis has cost households1.
The coalition says the average household has spent £2,300 more on energy bills since April 2021 than it would have done had prices remained stable, once government support schemes are taken into account. Across the country, it puts the additional household spend on energy over three years at more than £68bn1. Its figures use a baseline price cap of £1,042 for the average household at 30 March 2021, and are based on Ofgem data1. The coalition states that the new cap level still leaves gas and electricity costs 60% higher than in 2021, when the crisis began1.
The coalition's own table sets out the path of the cap1:
| Cap change date | Average household energy bill |
|---|---|
| 01-Oct-20 | £1,042 |
| 01-Apr-21 | £1,138 |
| 01-Oct-21 | £1,277 |
| 01-Apr-22 | £1,971 |
| 01-Oct-22 | £2,100 |
| 01-Apr-23 | £2,500 |
| 01-Jul-23 | £2,074 |
| 01-Oct-23 | £1,834 |
| 01-Jan-24 | £1,928 |
| 01-Apr-24 | £1,690 |
Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said:
"Even after this latest change to the price cap, energy prices remain 60% higher than they were before the energy bills crisis began."
Separately, Mitsubishi Electric has set out the gap between gas and electricity unit rates under the cap announced in February for April to June 2024, stating that gas is capped at 6p per kilowatt hour while electricity is capped at 24p per kWh, with standing charges rising to 60p a day for electricity and 31p a day for gas, subject to regional variation2. The company says this puts unfair costs onto households using heat pumps2. It reports that Lord Callanan, the Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance, told the House of Lords on 6 March 2024 that "we need to rebalance those costs (between electricity and gas), and the Government will issue a consultation on that later this year"2. No date for that consultation has been reported2.
Why it matters for households
The cap limits what a supplier can charge for each unit of gas and electricity on a default tariff, so a 12% cut lowers the cost of every kilowatt hour used, but it does not cap the total bill: a household that uses more than the typical consumption figures behind the £1,690 number will pay more1. The coalition's comparison matters because it shows the level bills have settled at rather than the direction of the latest change: even after the cut, costs are 60% above 2021 levels1. For a home's energy independence, the unit rate gap between gas at 6p and electricity at 24p per kWh shapes what any switch away from gas heating costs to run, and standing charges are paid regardless of how much energy is used2. The coalition's £2,300 figure is calculated after support payments, so it reflects what households actually spent rather than the headline cap alone1.
What happens next
The government is set to end both the Energy Price Guarantee and the Household Support Fund on 31 March 20241. The End Fuel Poverty Coalition was among 120 organisations that signed a letter to the Chancellor calling for the Fund to be extended by at least another year1. Councils have given 26 million grants to households struggling to afford the essentials under the Fund1. A consultation on rebalancing electricity and gas costs is expected later in 2024, according to the minister's statement reported by Mitsubishi Electric2.
Sources2 cited
- Energy bills crisis has cost the average household £2,300 each, endfuelpoverty.org.uk
- Cheaper electricity will mean more sustainable housing | Mitsubishi Electric, les.mitsubishielectric.co.uk