Energy bills could rocket by £400 per year

No-one wants to spend more on their energy bills than they need to, yet unfortunately, a huge number of households could be sleepwalking into higher bills when their tariffs come to an end this month. Don't be one of them!

Energy price rise

Data from energyhelpline.com shows that no less than 20 dual fuel tariffs are scheduled to end on 31 August, and unless those customers take action beforehand, they'll be automatically moved onto their supplier's more expensive standard rates. The figures show that this could add as much as £407 extra to the cost of an annual bill, depending on the supplier, which could have a huge impact on household finances.

Some of the biggest jumps will be experienced by customers of the biggest energy suppliers. For example, those on npower's MSM Collective Fix August 2017 tariff, who currently pay an average of £779 per year, could see their bills jump by 52% to £1,187 if they settled for the supplier's standard rate, an increase of £407.

Similarly, those on the supplier's Fixed Energy Online August 2017 and Online Price Fix August 2017 could see their bills rise by an average of £380 and £401 respectively, equating to increases of 47% and 51%.

Other particularly notable increases could hit customers on first:utility's First Fixed August 2017 v6 ONLINE ONLY tariff, who could see their bills rise by 48% (or £371) to £1,149, while those on First Fixed August 2017 v4 and First Fixed August 2017 v2 could see increases of 40% (£325) and 39% (£323) respectively.

Think small

As is often the case, those who opt for smaller suppliers could enjoy some of the smallest price increases should they settle for a standard tariff, with customers on Affect Energy's Fixed Saver August 2017 tariff seeing an average price rise of £100, or 13%, to just £884. Still, it makes a lot of sense to compare energy prices across the market to see what else is out there, as you can invariably secure cheaper prices by fixing.

"Hundreds of thousands of energy customers will see their cheap fixed rate energy deal end in August, spelling price rises of up to £407 a year," said Mark Todd, founder of energyhelpline. "If you're impacted, switch to a new cheap deal to keep savings going.

"Switching is now quicker and easier than ever before. If you do nothing, you'll be moved onto an expensive standard rate and hit by a big price rise."