Energy Price Cap announcement: Watch Martin Lewis explain what it means for your electricity and gas bills this winter
Will standing charges increase in April 23?
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MoneySavingExpert
Chair, Martin Lewis · Editor, Marcus Herbert
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will standing charges increase from their current levels ?
I do know what the standing charge is I have been told many many times but thats irrelevant to the question.
Everyone else seems to have got sidetracked by my answer explaining what the standing charge is instead of sticking to the post.
Perhaps it should be renamed Government levy or tax or whatever is appropriate so that users are not confused and will know exactly what they are paying for.
Does this government want to be more transparent ? I think not
The Government could have chosen to bin the Consumer Levy which would have left millions of consumers out of pocket as their credit balances would have realised pennies for every pound.
The ongoing argument about adding a hydrogen levy to the standing charge is that it would be a hidden Net Zero tax.
until the announcement at the end of the month its 'educated guess work' based on whats happened before. and that means understanding what the standing charge is AND how its set AND who makes the decision AND what they consider.
those are the things that will determine if the standing charge goes up, down or stays the same.
so people arent getting side tracked for saying the reason you gave (it's the only way energy companies can get more out of you) can't be right because thats just not how it works.
and why would it be called the 'government levy' when its made up of several differnt parts with the green policies making up around a quarter of it?
It's amazing how those with a can-do attitude and willingness to 'pitch in and work' get all the luck, isn't it?
Please consider buying some pet food and giving it to your local food bank collection or animal charity. Animals aren't to blame for the cost of living crisis.
To directly answer the OPs question I only see the SC rising as the continued push for net zero continues and more energy companies go belly up. Who's paying for all the additional infrastructure (not home chargers etc) to migrate all UK vehicles to EVs?
A bit more research re SC's
Though all are guessing, reading the link below
is in my estimation pointing to them rising. It makes sense for suppliers I
guess as hard-pushed customers cut back usage, the standing charges continue
to earn the suppliers revenues.
Quote from link below
EDF told the Observer that the daily fee was influenced by factors outside its control, including differing costs in the 14 regional networks. “The standing charge is not there for suppliers to profit from, but to cover the fixed costs suppliers incur, which have risen by over 86% in the last year,” it says.
Energy regulator Ofgem says “average” standing charges are capped at 46p a day. In fact, suppliers are free to set their own sum, as long as it does not exceed the energy price cap when combined with the price per unit of energy.
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2023/feb/06/fixed-price-energy-customers-face-bill-shock-as-standing-charges-soar
Why do we need a levy and what will be the impact on consumer bills?
The purpose of the levy is to provide long-term funding for the hydrogen business model, which will enable hydrogen producers to overcome the operating cost gap between low carbon hydrogen and fossil fuels.
The levy is not expected to be implemented until 2025 (subject to legislation being in place) and so we do not expect it to have impacts on consumer bills before then. Once introduced, we expect its impacts will ramp up as we look to deliver our 2030 hydrogen ambitions to improve energy security. As policy development on the levy is ongoing, with a number of key decisions still pending, there is uncertainty regarding the precise impact of the levy on consumer bills.
Source: Gov.uk