Opposition proposals to freeze the price cap - fair for people who have fixed?

TadleyBaggie

The opposition can propose anything they want, unlikely they would have to deliver any promise for quite a while.

Sea_Shell

Ultrasonic said:

I do think that if there is a price 'freeze' that the April price cap is probably too low a level for this, removing a desirable cost incentive for the better off to reduce energy consumption (for reasons both of the current supply issues and climate change).

I wonder if the French customers are all slashing their usage to the bone in light of their government intervention?

Or is "Carry on burning" this winter?

It needs to be joint enterprise by the people and government...we can't be protected entirely from the wholesale prices...we all need to do our bit to get those kWhs reduced.

Spies

Why would our current government bow so easily to a proposal from the opposition, look how long it took for them to accept the windfall tax. 

Section62

Sea_Shell said:

Ultrasonic said:

I do think that if there is a price 'freeze' that the April price cap is probably too low a level for this, removing a desirable cost incentive for the better off to reduce energy consumption (for reasons both of the current supply issues and climate change).

Or is "Carry on burning" this winter?

I think the French government are pinning their hopes on "Carry on Fissioning".

(unrelated to the film franchise, hopefuly)

savers_united

Ultrasonic said:

savers_united said:

They have ripped it up already by changing from 6 to 3 months, the cap was viewed as a fix for 6 months and no doubt many stayed on the SVT for that very reason, rather than move to an actual fixed deal, but will now face 2 rises during the winter season at short notice and when the best fixes have been pulled..

I don't really see that as equivalent. The principle remains intact.

savers_united said:

There is no easy way, if something changes then where do you draw the line, with the vast majority of UK households now on the energy cap it's overall effect will be positive, those left will be on fixed or other variable type smart tariffs. These are in the minority and will be a mix of below price cap fixed deals and others who may be coming to the end of their fixes shortly.

So in percentage terms those negatively affected will be very small, and even then may still be better off over the longer term.

I'm not sure the point in bold is accurate. As I believe I posted above, the last poll here showed a 70:30 split in favour of those on fixed tariffs. I've not seen recent data for the population as a whole though. Have you?

In terms of 'drawing a line' my point would be that the fixed tariff issue can't simply be ignored. Off the top of my head I think the government covering exit fees and mandating energy suppliers to allow a transfer to the SVT with them if a customer wishes would probably be the best option. Trying to address charges above previous price caps probably would be a step too far. In the first instance though I'd be interested to hear if/how the likes of Kier Starmer think this should be addressed.

Changing from 6 to 3 months makes a big difference to people, I was in the same position with my Gas in April thinking about a 1 year fix, but took a chance of a higher rate SVT for 6 months from October would work out better and review it next April but to have another rise in January throws all those calcs out the window. It's totally different and the changes should have been announced with 12mths notice.

It was a gamble I took that the SVT would remain at 6 month reviews, you have gambled on a fix working out better based on information you had at the time like myself.

I think anyone on a fix for the next 2 winters would really need to weigh up that if this price freeze was implemented and only for 6 months what the cost of getting back onto another fix would then be in April next year. Any fix sub 40p for Elec and 11p for Gas would make that a very hard call.

As for numbers on the Cap Gov't figures seem to suggest from the 28mil households with Energy supply 22mil are currently on the cap. 

pochase

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-62542541

This makes even less sense.

Starmer claims they will save every household £1000 and that there will be no cap increase. The projected increase in October is almost £1600, what happens with the £600 difference? And the next £600 required for January cap.

They want to drop the pledges made in May. Good luck with getting back the £324 already paid out to households on benefits.

Also was the May announcement not financed partly with windfall taxes? They now increase the tax to 8 billion, but the the first 5 billion in the 8 billion was used for the May may pledges. Somehow I doubt you can use the money twice.

Ultrasonic

savers_united said:

Changing from 6 to 3 months makes a big difference to people, 

I don't disagree this will make a difference but I think it's a much smaller one than what we're discussing.

savers_united said:

As for numbers on the Cap Gov't figures seem to suggest from the 28mil households with Energy supply 22mil are currently on the cap. 

Source? I'm curious how up to date this figure is, as I think we've gone through a period where the proportion on fixed tariffs has gradually been increasing.

QrizB

Ultrasonic said:

I'm not sure the point in bold is accurate. As I believe I posted above, the last poll here showed a 70:30 split in favour of those on fixed tariffs. I've not seen recent data for the population as a whole though. Have you?

Not recent data, but *before* the current energy crisis there were more than 50% of customers on the SVT. (Data from Ofgem, I can look for it again if you can't find it.)

RobM99

Any fixed rate is a gamble. You're hardly going to a petrol retailer and demand a refund because it went down since you last bought some, are you?. A fix is a good decision at the time with a possible bad outcome.

Fixed and saved money? Well done.
Fixed and lost out? Tough.

Ultrasonic

QrizB said:

Ultrasonic said:

I'm not sure the point in bold is accurate. As I believe I posted above, the last poll here showed a 70:30 split in favour of those on fixed tariffs. I've not seen recent data for the population as a whole though. Have you?

Not recent data, but *before* the current energy crisis there were more than 50% of customers on the SVT. (Data from Ofgem, I can look for it again if you can't find it.)

My thinking is that the proportion of households on SVTs probably peaked after all the SOLR transfers last year (first time I'd been on an SVT in ages, possibly ever), but particularly over the last six months have probably been dropping significantly as the increasingly worrying October cap predictions have been coming in. I'll bet the 70:30 fixed:SVT split in July's poll here will overestimate the proportion on fixed tariffs in the wider population but for me it suggests that we're probably a way off the vast majority being on SVTs.