{"id":99986,"date":"2024-12-18T15:35:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-18T15:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/?p=99986"},"modified":"2024-12-18T14:58:52","modified_gmt":"2024-12-18T14:58:52","slug":"how-to-beat-januarys-energy-price-hike-2-weeks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/how-to-beat-januarys-energy-price-hike-2-weeks\/","title":{"rendered":"Energy Price Cap Rising in January \u2013 Here\u2019s How to Save Money Fast"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Energy Price<\/strong> increases are set to hit in <strong>January<\/strong>, affecting <strong>millions of households<\/strong> across the <strong>UK<\/strong>. However, there\u2019s a <strong>simple way<\/strong> to avoid this rise\u2014but <strong>time is running out<\/strong>, with only <strong>two weeks left to act<\/strong>. What <strong>steps<\/strong> can you take now to <strong>reduce your costs<\/strong> in <strong>2024<\/strong>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">January 2024 Price Increase : What to Expect<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>From <strong>January<\/strong>, the typical household <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/energy-bills-shakeup-octopus-zero-standing\/\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"100004\">energy bill<\/a><\/strong> under the <strong>Energy Price Cap<\/strong> will increase by <strong>\u00a321 annually<\/strong>, raising the average cost to <strong>\u00a31,923<\/strong> for households on <strong>standard variable tariffs (SVTs)<\/strong>. The <strong>Energy Price Cap<\/strong>, regulated by <strong>Ofgem<\/strong>, is updated <strong>quarterly<\/strong> to reflect changes in <strong>wholesale energy prices<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/ofgem-charging-you-more-energy-busy-hours\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2977\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">According to <strong>Ofgem<\/strong><\/a>, <strong>80% of UK households<\/strong>\u2014around <strong>22 million homes<\/strong>\u2014are currently on <strong>SVTs<\/strong>. These tariffs automatically adjust to the cap, which means customers face <strong>price fluctuations<\/strong> every <strong>three months<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For context :<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In <strong>January 2023<\/strong>, the <strong>Energy Price Cap<\/strong> stood at <strong>\u00a34,279 annually<\/strong> for a typical household.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>By <strong>July 2023<\/strong>, the cap dropped to <strong>\u00a32,074<\/strong> before falling further to <strong>\u00a31,923<\/strong> in <strong>October<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>While January\u2019s increase is modest compared to previous <strong>peaks<\/strong>, <strong>energy prices<\/strong> remain high relative to <strong>pre-2022 levels<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why Fixed Tariffs Could Save You Money<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Energy experts<\/strong> are recommending customers consider switching to <strong>fixed-rate tariffs<\/strong> before <strong>January<\/strong>. A <strong>fixed tariff<\/strong> locks in your <strong>energy rate<\/strong> for a set period, providing <strong>price stability<\/strong> and shielding households from future <strong>increases<\/strong> in the <strong>Energy Price Cap<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Martin Lewis<\/strong> of <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.moneysavingexpert.com\/utilities\/what-are-the-price-cap-unit-rates-\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">MoneySavingExpert<\/a><\/strong> explained :<br>\u201cThe most important thing to understand is that price-capped tariffs are variable, and the prices change every three months in line with the cap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So when considering if it&#8217;s worth switching to a fixed deal, you need to look at what is expected to happen over the course of the next year. A fix that looks decent now could end up costing you more over the next year if energy prices drop.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Currently, some <strong>fixed tariffs<\/strong> are available at rates lower than the projected <strong>Energy Price Cap<\/strong> for the first quarter of <strong>2024<\/strong>. Based on <strong>industry estimates<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A <strong>fixed tariff<\/strong> priced <strong>1% below<\/strong> the <strong>January-March 2024 price cap<\/strong> could save a household <strong>\u00a319 annually<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Over the next <strong>12 months<\/strong>, fixing could yield greater savings if <strong>wholesale energy prices<\/strong> remain high or climb further.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the decision to <strong>fix<\/strong> should be made carefully, as it involves predicting future <strong>energy price trends<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to Check and Compare Fixed Tariffs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To evaluate whether switching to a <strong>fixed deal<\/strong> makes sense, consumers should :<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Check Offers from Their Current Supplier<\/strong> : Some suppliers offer exclusive <strong>fixed-rate deals<\/strong> to existing customers, which may not be widely advertised.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Use Comparison Sites<\/strong> : Tools like <strong>Uswitch<\/strong> and <strong>Compare the Market<\/strong> can help identify the most competitive tariffs available.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Monitor Predictions<\/strong> : <strong>Industry forecasts<\/strong>, including those from <strong>Cornwall Insight<\/strong>, suggest <strong>energy prices<\/strong> are unlikely to fall significantly in <strong>2024<\/strong>, making <strong>fixing<\/strong> more attractive.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Fixed tariffs<\/strong> are also recommended for households that value <strong>certainty<\/strong> in budgeting. By locking in a rate, you avoid the unpredictability of <strong>quarterly cap changes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Statistics on UK Energy Customers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>80% on Standard Variable Tariffs<\/strong>: Approximately <strong>22 million households<\/strong> remain on <strong>SVTs<\/strong>, meaning their <strong>energy costs<\/strong> fluctuate every <strong>three months<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Potential Savings of \u00a3200+<\/strong>: Households that switched to competitive <strong>fixed-rate deals<\/strong> in <strong>2023<\/strong> saved an average of <strong>\u00a3200 annually<\/strong> compared to the capped rate.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Energy Consumption<\/strong> : The average <strong>UK household<\/strong> uses <strong>12,000 kWh<\/strong> of gas and <strong>2,900 kWh<\/strong> of electricity annually, making small rate changes impactful on total costs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If you stay on a <strong>standard variable tariff (SVT)<\/strong>, <strong>energy costs<\/strong> will <strong>rise in January<\/strong> and could <strong>increase further in 2024<\/strong>. While <strong>SVTs offer flexibility<\/strong> if <strong>prices drop<\/strong>, switching to a <strong>fixed deal<\/strong> requires <strong>action<\/strong>, as it\u2019s <strong>not automatic<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With the <strong>January increase<\/strong> approaching, customers of <strong>British Gas<\/strong>, <strong>Octopus<\/strong>, <strong>Eon<\/strong>, <strong>EDF<\/strong>, and <strong>OVO<\/strong> should <strong>compare options now<\/strong>. <strong>Acting quickly<\/strong> could help households <strong>lock in savings<\/strong> and manage <strong>rising energy costs<\/strong> effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Millions of UK households face an energy price hike in January, but switching to a fixed tariff now could help you save money in 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":100024,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-energy","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99986"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99986\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":100051,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99986\/revisions\/100051"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/100024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}