On a fixed price tariff, should I be worried?

MyUsername

I am on a fixed price tariff that is due to expire in February next year, I live in a 4 bedroomed house and I spend about £850 a year on gas and electric. I am disabled so I get the £400 energy discount the £650 low income payment, the £150 PIP payment and the £140 warm home discount meaning that at the moment I am getting free energy as the payments are much more than my energy costs. 

Should I be worried though about prices shooting up once my fixed tariff ends in February 2023 though? Living in a 4 bedroomed house worries me a bit. 

sienew

What rates do you pay per kwh?

If it's a fix from before prices started rising then you are going to be in for a massive price shock in February. If it's a fix from the days when prices were cheap it's not uncommon to expect 4x price rise or more.

If you know your annual usage you can work out (based on predictions) roughly what to expect the monthly cost to be. The good thing is, if you are on a fix now you might be able to save the money the government are giving you this autumn/winter which should cover much of the increase you can expect in 2023. If you don't save that money you may very well be in for a massive shock after another two price cap increases.

savers_united

If you can afford the ~£850 a year then I would certainly put that extra support to one side as you are going to need it when you come off your fix. 

How much that increase is will depend when you took your fix and the unit rate, without knowing this its difficult to give an idea of the increase you will face when the fix ends.
If the £850 you currently pay is accurate based on regular meter readings you can expect that to at least treble by Feb 23

Janie2008

I would try not to worry. You don't need the extra support until your fix ends and hopefully by then they'll be more help provided.

MyUsername

For electricity it's 20.41p per KWh day and 8.52p per KWh night, gas is 2.7p per KWh. I Normally use about 2700 KWh a year for electricity and about 6000 KWh a year for gas. 

I have been putting the money on one side to cover any increases in costs when they do come. 

sienew

MyUsername said:

For electricity it's 20.41p per KWh day and 8.52p per KWh night, gas is 2.7p per KWh. I Normally use about 2700 KWh a year for electricity and about 6000 KWh a year for gas. 

I have been putting the money on one side to cover any increases in costs when they do come. 

Based on that usage I'd be expecting about £3,000 a year when your fix ends in early 2023

Like mentioned above I wouldn't worry as everyone will be in the same position but I would prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.

pochase

sienew said:

MyUsername said:For electricity it's 20.41p per KWh day and 8.52p per KWh night, gas is 2.7p per KWh. I Normally use about 2700 KWh a year for electricity and about 6000 KWh a year for gas. 

I have been putting the money on one side to cover any increases in costs when they do come. 

Based on that usage I'd be expecting about £3,000 a year when your fix ends in early 2023

Like mentioned above I wouldn't worry as everyone will be in the same position but I would prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.

Good estimate.



It might go further up in April.

macman

Your kWh usage is very low anyway for a 4 b/r house. If your fix takes you into February, then that covers hopefully the bulk of the winter, which is when you use about 80% of your total consumption.
You should also by now have the £150 CT rebate if you are in Bands A to D.

MyUsername

macman said:

Your kWh usage is very low anyway for a 4 b/r house. If your fix takes you into February, then that covers hopefully the bulk of the winter, which is when you use about 80% of your total consumption.
You should also by now have the £150 CT rebate if you are in Bands A to D.

Selective room heating and geofencing the heating has helped a lot. I spent hours making my heating work more efficiently and as things go I am glad a did. 

Mstty

Hours....pffft get an air source heat pump it'll take you months maybe years to master🤣🤣