Potential energy price cuts next year

Scottish and Southern Energy has revealed that it hopes to cut household energy prices early next year if wholesale prices continue to drop.

Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, comments: "This is welcome news indeed. However, I urge consumers not to become complacent about energy usage this winter because this is still not a done deal. The bunting should stay in the cupboard until all suppliers have shown consumers the colour of their money.

"The crippling price hikes that added an extra 42% or £381 onto the average household energy bills this year have yet to be played through into winter bills. Consumers need to be aware that the promise of a future price cut will not limit the impact of energy prices this winter so they still need to take action now to protect themselves.

"People need to adjust quickly and there are two key steps to this - making sure we pay the lowest possible price for our energy and learning to use less of it. Insulating homes, using energy efficient light bulbs and switching TVs and DVD players off rather than leaving on standby will all help reduce the amount of energy we use. Paying by direct debit and moving to an online plan will help us to pay less for the energy we use."

Key energy price rise facts:

Prices increased by 42% or £381 this year - £4.3 billion added onto household energy bills in only 8 months
Fuel poverty rocketed from 4 million at the beginning of 2008 to 5.4 million today
New research suggests that 30% of pensioner households are in fuel poverty, but these are joined by 20% of families with one income and 17% of single person working households

For more information visit uSwitch.com