Exact date energy bills change this week and how to calculate yours
MILLIONS of households will see their energy bills rise this weekend.
On Saturday October 1, the average household will see their bills increase to 2,500 a year – up from £1,971.
Earlier this month, Liz Truss confirmed the new Energy Price Guarantee (EPG), saving families from bills of £3,500 a year.
Bills had been due to hit £3,500 under Ofgem’s energy price cap. But, the new EPG, replaces this and only limits the amount suppliers can charge.
The EPG does not limit the amount a household will pay based off their energy usage.
This is why your bills may fall above or below the £2,500 figure widely publicised.
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It is important to recognise that customers on a fixed deal that have a lower unit rate for gas and electricity than the EPG, will still pay cheaper rates.
But thousands of customers locked into expensive fixed tariffs will benefit from the EPG.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has already published details on how much the average household will save under the EPG based on property type.
However, we explain how your can calculate how much your bills will rise to based of your own gas and electricity usage.
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How do I calculate my energy bill?
To calculate how much you will pay from October 1, you will need to find out both your unit rate for gas and electricity and the standing charge for each fuel type.
The unit rate will usually be shown on your bill in p/kWh.
The standing charge is a daily charged that is paid 365 days of the year – irrespective of whether or not you use any gas or electricity.
You will then need to note down your own annual energy usage from a previous bill.
Once you have these details you can work out your gas and electricity costs seperatly.
Multiple your usage in kWh by the unit rate cost in p/kWh for the corresponding fuel type – this will give you your usage costs.
You’ll then need to multiply each standing charge by 365 and add this figure to the totals for your usage – this will then give you your annual costs.
But if this is too much maths for you, you can use an online calculator like the one offered by MoneySavingExpert.com to find out how much you’ll pay from October.
What’s the average costs for those who pay by direct debit?
From October, a typical household will pay the unit rates and standing charges below but check with your energy supplier as the figures may slightly differ.
A typical household will pay £2,500 a year from October if they pay the following rates:
- 10.33p per killowatt hour (p/kWh) for gas
- 34.04p/kWh for electricity
- A standing charge of 28.49p per day for gas
- A standing charge of 46.36p per day for electricity
What’s the average costs for those who don’t pay by direct debit?
A typical household that doesn’t pay their bills by direct debit will see costs rise to £2,740 from October 1, based off the following rates:
- 11.12p per killowatt hour (p/kWh) for gas
- 36.80p/kWh for electricity
- A standing charge of 33.54p per day for gas
- A standing charge of 52.40p per day for electricity
What’s the average costs for those on prepayment meters?
The average household on a prepayment meter will see their bills rise from £2,017 to £2,559 in October, based off the following charges:
- 10.63p per killowatt hour (p/kWh) for gas
- 33.08p/kWh for electricity
- A standing charge of 37.51p per day for gas
- A standing charge of 51.41p per day for electricity
What energy bill help is coming?
From October the first, all households will start to receive a £400 energy bill discount.
The payment will be dished out by your energy supplier and will be split across six discounts between October and March next year.
Households will receive a £66 energy bill discount in October and November and a discount worth £67 in December, January, February and March.
In November, a £300 one-off “Pensioner Cost of Living Payment” will be paid out to eight million households.
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It will be given to those who already get the winter fuel payment – which is worth between £100 and £300 for those over state pension age.
Millions of households are in line to get the £150 Warm Home Discount between December and March 2023.