MSE News: Energy bill hikes hit millions as price cap rises by an average £139/yr

Maddiemoo

ItsComingRome said:

Maddiemoo said:

I don’t understand that if the price cap means the average bill increases by £139 per year, why my supplier wants to increase my £139 d/d by £70 per month when I am £330 in credit. I understand we use more energy in the winter months but can this really be right that my annual bill is going up by £800 a year?! 

Your payment is going up £800, not necessarily your bill.

Good point but it’s still a lot extra to find each month - let’s hope you’re right & I’ll get a big refund at the end of the year 

Maddiemoo

QrizB said:

Maddiemoo said:

I don’t understand that if the price cap means the average bill increases by £139 per year, why my supplier wants to increase my £139 d/d by £70 per month when I am £330 in credit. I understand we use more energy in the winter months but can this really be right that my annual bill is going up by £800 a year?! 

Who is your supplier? Are they one of those that charges "six up, six down" seasonal DDs where you pay 2/3rds as much in the summer and 4/3rds in the winter? If so, a £70 increase in October after £139 in September sounds about right.

I’m with Outfox The Market - I only changed to them in April this year as they were cheaper than my previous. I’m not sure if they do what you are suggesting or not but I do know I had to pay a month in advance & have so far always been in credit with them. 

I guess it’s time to try even harder to reduce my energy usage, if I can! 

wiseonesomeofthetime

Maddiemoo said:

ItsComingRome said:

Maddiemoo said:

I don’t understand that if the price cap means the average bill increases by £139 per year, why my supplier wants to increase my £139 d/d by £70 per month when I am £330 in credit. I understand we use more energy in the winter months but can this really be right that my annual bill is going up by £800 a year?! 

Your payment is going up £800, not necessarily your bill.

Good point but it’s still a lot extra to find each month - let’s hope you’re right & I’ll get a big refund at the end of the year 

Surely you can simply decline the rise. 

Maddiemoo

wiseonesomeofthetime said:

Maddiemoo said:

ItsComingRome said:

Maddiemoo said:

I don’t understand that if the price cap means the average bill increases by £139 per year, why my supplier wants to increase my £139 d/d by £70 per month when I am £330 in credit. I understand we use more energy in the winter months but can this really be right that my annual bill is going up by £800 a year?! 

Your payment is going up £800, not necessarily your bill.

Good point but it’s still a lot extra to find each month - let’s hope you’re right & I’ll get a big refund at the end of the year 

Surely you can simply decline the rise. 

They tell me I can’t decline or amend the rise & they have every right to change my direct debit - basically, I have no choice in the matter 😔

GrahamB

Ultrasonic said:

GrahamB said:

Sorry for being really thick, but I just don't understand how the price cap works  .  How do I work out what the £1277 per year equates to in KWh for both Gas and Electric to see if we fit into the stereotype of being  'a typical user' or am I barking up the wrong tree ????

I'd suggest forgetting about the cap and the change to this. Are you on a fixed or variable tariff? If fixed then nothing has changed for you. If variable then you can work out the the difference to you by looking at how the tariff costs have changed, and using your actual kWh usage to calculate costs.

I just wanted to have a clearer understanding of how the 'Price Cap' worked as we were on a fixed deal with Avro, but of course are now in the process of being transferred over to 'Octopus', that was all.  We're at present unable to find out what the tariff costs are going to be, but we've been advised by 'Octopus' that we'll be put on their 'Flexible Tariff' which is some £10 below the 'Price Cap'.

[Deleted User]

If my understanding is correct, it will be this:-

Octopus Flexible October V2

GasU:3.94   GasSC:26.11
LecU:19.89  LecSC:26.82

From that, you can work out how it affects you (if you know your actual annual usage).

As I don't live in a 'typical' tiny cardboard box, I'll be paying £500 more than last year.

MWT

DeletedUser said:

If my understanding is correct, it will be this:-

Octopus Flexible October V2

GasU:3.94   GasSC:26.11
LecU:19.89  LecSC:26.82

Keep in mind that those numbers vary by region…

SnowMan

GrahamB said:

Ultrasonic said:

GrahamB said:

Sorry for being really thick, but I just don't understand how the price cap works  .  How do I work out what the £1277 per year equates to in KWh for both Gas and Electric to see if we fit into the stereotype of being  'a typical user' or am I barking up the wrong tree ????

I'd suggest forgetting about the cap and the change to this. Are you on a fixed or variable tariff? If fixed then nothing has changed for you. If variable then you can work out the the difference to you by looking at how the tariff costs have changed, and using your actual kWh usage to calculate costs.

I just wanted to have a clearer understanding of how the 'Price Cap' worked as we were on a fixed deal with Avro, but of course are now in the process of being transferred over to 'Octopus', that was all.  We're at present unable to find out what the tariff costs are going to be, but we've been advised by 'Octopus' that we'll be put on their 'Flexible Tariff' which is some £10 below the 'Price Cap'.

A number of posters have independently worked out that the new Octopus tariff for former Avro customers will be Flexible Octopus October 2021 v2. The logic to get there is that it's a new 'flexible' tariff about £10 below the energy cap for average use hence likely to be it. We await official confirmation of that being the tariff so can't say for sure.

You can find the standard charge/unit rates for your region by going to

https://octopus.energy/tariffs/

Don't click on 'get a  quote' but enter your postcode instead and it's listed under current tariffs. You will probably need to click on 'load more' a few times until the Flexible Octopus October v2 tariff appears in the list.

Alternatively it's listed in the MSE Cheap Energy Club as Flexible Octopus v2. You can change your current tariff to Flexible Octopus v2 (it's an abbreviated name in there without the October but is the same tariff) and it will show your resulting cost based on your estimated gas/electricity usage.

https://clubs.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub

ozuma

Maddiemoo said:

QrizB said:

Maddiemoo said:

I don’t understand that if the price cap means the average bill increases by £139 per year, why my supplier wants to increase my £139 d/d by £70 per month when I am £330 in credit. I understand we use more energy in the winter months but can this really be right that my annual bill is going up by £800 a year?! 

Who is your supplier? Are they one of those that charges "six up, six down" seasonal DDs where you pay 2/3rds as much in the summer and 4/3rds in the winter? If so, a £70 increase in October after £139 in September sounds about right.

I’m with Outfox The Market - I only changed to them in April this year as they were cheaper than my previous. I’m not sure if they do what you are suggesting or not but I do know I had to pay a month in advance & have so far always been in credit with them. 

I guess it’s time to try even harder to reduce my energy usage, if I can! 

Outfox The Market clearly explained their calculation methodology when they advised me of a change to our monthly DD.

I also found they were very receptive to any reasonable request to change that calculation.

They explained to me that the initial request is sent out automatically via computer. If you challenge it, then it is reviewed by a human.

GrahamB

DeletedUser said:

If my understanding is correct, it will be this:-

Octopus Flexible October V2

GasU:3.94   GasSC:26.11
LecU:19.89  LecSC:26.82

From that, you can work out how it affects you (if you know your actual annual usage).

As I don't live in a 'typical' tiny cardboard box, I'll be paying £500 more than last year.

If we happen to be in the same region, hence the same rates, I reckon we'll be paying an extra £250 a year more.  We live in a medium size 3 bed bungalow.

Thanks for the figures 👍