Energy bill hike on the way as twelve energy tariffs come to an end

On Monday 31 March and Tuesday 1 April, many households could be automatically moved to more expensive tariffs if they haven’t already taken action and switched to a better deal.
 
All of the UK’s big six suppliers have tariffs that are coming to an end within the next week, meaning that potentially thousands of people could end up paying around 11.5% – or £122.13 on average – more for their gas and electricity. The price increases vary by supplier and region, but range from an average of £60.14 for SSE customers on the Fixed Discount April 2014 tariff, to £183.24, on average, for those on EDF’s Fixed Price 2014 tariff.
 
Those consumers who didn’t shop around and switch when they received notice of their tariff coming to an end will be automatically rolled onto their supplier’s standard tariff, and so could end up paying more for their energy.
 
For example, an EDF Energy customer on the Fixed Price 2014 tariff, living in Bristol, would currently spend £1,010 a year on their energy, which would rise to £1,194 on EDF Energy’s standard tariff. They could move to Extra Energy’s Fixed Price September 2015 v2 at an annual cost of £1,056, or First Utility’s iSave Fixed v18 May 2015, which would cost them £1,073. While they wouldn’t save on their previous annual bill, they would save over £120 a year in each case compared to what they’d pay on EDF Energy’s standard tariff.

Jeremy Cryer, energy spokesperson at Gocompare.com, said: “Your energy supplier will give you between 42 and 49 days’ notice of your fixed term tariff coming to an end, so once you get this you must shop around to see if it’s worth switching to another deal. Otherwise you will be rolled onto your supplier’s standard tariff, which is often the most expensive option.
 
“Once you have received this notice you can switch with confidence as you can’t be charged a termination fee. And as it can take around four to six weeks to switch suppliers it’s vital that you compare lots of different tariffs sooner rather than later so that if you choose to switch you won’t have to wait too long to benefit from your new energy rates.
 
“It takes minutes to shop around for a new energy tariff using a comparison site, and all you need is your postcode, annual energy usage figures and a few other details – so it helps to have a recent bill to hand. Your gas and electricity supply won’t be affected by switching supplier, so if you find a better deal vote with your wallet.”