54% increase - Was No to fix before hand the wrong advice ?

wild666

If the rates are 28p E and 7p G then even the cheapest I could fix with Octopus 3.72p E and 1.7p G dearer than the capped rates now. Then there are the standing charges which if put up to £319 between the two, £159.50 each, possibly more per day for E and less for G,  would be around the 43p per day or 86p combined, that would be £6 per week without using any gas or electric. 

Anyone on benefits and not working will have to seriously cut their usage knowing that each week they were paying £6 for using no electric or gas. Could we see those on benefits only buying stuff they need day to day and getting rid of items like TV's computers, fridges and freezers? This could impact on their claims as they would have little use of the internet for interaction with the DWP about their claim and job prospects. In all probability it wouldn't happen but there is a chance some will do this. 

Fred2712

I signed fixed tariff about 3 weeks ago until Oct 23 with no exit fees, looking like it will be less than the standard variable from April 1st so happy with that, changing on the 7 Feb so sure will be an increase for 7 weeks then lower than the SVR

wild666

Bexie1989 said:

People were scoffing at me when I fixed for 2 years back in September for 23p a unit (electric only for me, but the gas price was decent too). Guess I'm laughing now?

I just wish my dad had let me fix his, too. He's severely disabled and housebound, so a lot of electric use and he feels the cold badly and has his heating set to 23 degrees. I asked if he wanted me to sort that fix and he said no because all the advice said to sit on the variable and wait. Now I'm really worried about what he's going to do!

Even the new cap is going to be lower than most fixes unless there is a sudden fall in electric and gas prices. One way this could happen is if people stopped using electric and gas as they do now. Surplus gas means they have to lower the price to get it to sell.

t0rt0ise

The only help I'll get is a £200 loan which I don't want. My pension income is low but I have savings so it's my savings that will diminish. It's not what I saved for but it is what it is. But that loan is a pain, I don't do loans and really don't want it.

spot1034

t0rt0ise said:

The only help I'll get is a £200 loan which I don't want. My pension income is low but I have savings so it's my savings that will diminish. It's not what I saved for but it is what it is. But that loan is a pain, I don't do loans and really don't want it.

It's not really a loan that's personal to you, more a discount now and a series of small additional charges later. No one will pursue you for it if you go to live in someone else's house or leave the country, or become unavailable to make payments in any other way which I won't go into!

Bazooka_joe

I’m with British Gas for both electric and gas and switched to a new tariff a few days ago. Estimated bills in my usage are £40 a month less than I am paying now and that’s fixed until September 2023 so very happy with that. 

molerat

My pre crisis annual bills were around £980, the April cap puts that up to around £2600, a 165% increase.

maisie_cat

brewerdave said:

Because of the loading on gas, looks I'll be paying ~136% more after April than I was paying when Neon Reef and Zog were still trading - life is definitely a b**ch !!

I've just calculated at +135% compared to my old neon reef or £773 ouch!
I'm taking the view that it's less than £15 a week so we can probably find savings somewhere.

themastergoose

Fred2712 said:

So 54% increase on the standard variable rate just announced, I fixed a while ago so was Martin’s advice not to fix wrong ?

At face value, the 2 year fix BG offered me at the start of January 2022 would have in the long run been the better deal. I was offered a SOLR exclusive 2 year fix, and it worked out at around 20% higher than the price cap.

I currently pay: Electricity 23.016p Day / 12.144p Night / 23.770p Standing Charge - Gas 3.987p / 26.123 Standing Charge
I was offered: Electricity 27.351p Day / 18.029p Night / 31.990p Standing Charge - Gas 5.213p / 28.413 Standing Charge

I'm now looking at (estimated): Electricity 35.444p Day / 27.764p Night - Gas 6.139p

I added 54% to my current prices to work out the rough estimates it will rise to. Standing charge wasn't done as I'm not sure if that rises by 54% also.

The universal advice was to NOT FIX. I think this was wrong, as even "overpaying" between Jan and April if I'd have taken it would overall have worked out cheaper by the time that 2 year fix ended.

dander

I'd be interested to know what other people are planning to do regarding fixed rates. Sign up now and pay extra until April, or keep waiting? I'd rather wait really, because I'd like to maximise my winter months on current tariff and I'll get next winter on the fix (I'm with octopus and my best deal is the 1 year loyalty fix). But are the fixes likely to go up a lot between now and April? Will I regret waiting?