E.ON cuts prices

The flurry of price drops by Britain's energy suppliers continues with E.ON the latest supplier to announce that it is cutting its prices, this time by 6% or £33 for electricity. The reduction comes into effect from 27th February. It means that the average E.ON dual fuel bill will drop from £1,293 to £1,260. The supplier is also waiving its cancellation fees for customers on existing fixed price plans.

Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, says: "Cash strapped consumers have now seen five of Britain's big six energy suppliers move to cut their prices. This will alleviate some of the pressure that households are under, but with cuts coming in at around £30 compared to increases of £224 or 21% since the end of 2010, consumers may be feeling short changed. This will not be helped by the fact that suppliers are focussing their cuts on one fuel, while previous hikes hit both gas and electricity.

"The fact is that these cuts will not even come close to wiping out last year's eye watering price hikes and even if there is a further cut later this year are still unlikely to do so. Thankfully though this is something that consumers can do for themselves by shopping around for a cheaper energy deal and reducing the amount of energy they use. Households can save up to £420 by moving to dual fuel, paying by direct debit and signing up to a competitively priced deal - a far bigger saving than that being offered by suppliers lowering their prices."