British Gas fixed tariff changes

Commenting on the changes to fixed tariffs from British Gas, Scott Byrom, utilities manager at moneysupermarket.com, said: "Alarm bells should be ringing for any British Gas customers who have just rolled off the Price Promise June 2010 fixed deal at the end of last month. Those customers have automatically rolled on to Price Promise 2011 to fix for another 12 months - £25 more expensive a year at £1,152.60. However, as is often the case, the devil is in the detail; customers have until 1st October 2010 if they want to change their mind without incurring a termination fee. British Gas is offering customers two alternative options, move onto Price Promise 2012, its 24 month fixed deal at £1,192.49 a year, or revert onto its standard offering at £1,157.27.  If bill payers don't decide before 1st October they'll incur a £35 termination fee per fuel to make the move.

"While the alternative deals from British Gas may seem attractive for those willing to fix, it will pay dividends to consider casting your net a little wider before committing yourself to a new deal. For those wanting to shield themselves against the prospect of rising energy bills the cheapest alternative fixed deal on the market is currently npower Go Fix v2 at £902.38 a year - a staggering £250 cheaper than British Gas Price Promise 2011, and it allows you to fix for longer too. Furthermore the npower fix is only a hairs-breadth more expensive than the best online deal currently available; E.ON's SaveOnline v2 tariff at £882.71 a year.

"With wholesale energy prices hitting a year-high last week we fully expect to see more of the best deals for new customers being pulled and, at some stage, prices for existing customers to creep up. Fix now onto the best deal if you want to seek shelter from the brewing utilities storm - and for all of those bill payers on a fixed tariff, always beware of when your fix is coming to an end as you may not want to stick with the automatic alternative."