I did this yesterday and posted it onto my facebook page to illustrate to some of my friends the effects of what is coming. I took our usage for December and January (taken via an API out of my smart meter which I had installed a few months ago) and plotted it against the charges as they would have been with our old fix, as it would have been with the fix we thought we had, as it is on the price cap and what it would have been if we were paying the rates from April.
Whenever I look into it, our household falls into the 'lower use than average' category. We cook and heat using gas, with an older boiler and a hot water tank. I set the house thermostat pretty low and expect everyone to wear jumpers, always have.
In June last year our fix (with So Energy) came to an end, and we moved to Pure Planet. From what I knew about the energy market and prices, I already knew at this point we'd end up paying more than we had before.
Then in October Pure Planet (like 30 or so other suppliers in 2021) went bust, so we got moved to Shell Energy and our prices were set to the price cap.
(It's really a rate cap, not a price cap, but that's a debate for another day. Also worth noting what you pay on the price cap varies depending on where you live)
A few days ago Ofgem announced what the price cap from April looks like, and whilst no-one has a crystal ball it's entirely possible that the price cap later this year may go higher again.
The table is not entirely fun reading, and if you're currently still on a fix you're likely to have a helluva surprise when you come off it.
The standing charge alone will nearly double to what we were paying in 2020/2021, and I don't know which percentage to give as a final figure to think about. We paid around 17% more on the price cap than we would have expected to on the fix we had before Pure Planet went bust, but if it was on the April rates we would have paid over 80% more.
Like others here, this will be painful but I can economise and if anything it just means less will go to savings each month, but there will be others out there in work who this will hit really really really hard.
Our household income is a bit uneven, I earn OK money, my wife working as a teaching assistant not so much. If it wasn't for my wage this would be exceptionally painful. Add on to that that I'm quite militant over our energy use already which helps, for others who aren't used to keeping an eye on this things really will know about it once the bills start landing.
edit: I forgot my final thought which was one of the other things I came on here to post. For those who will really struggle, who may even struggle to afford to cook with these prices, £200 is nothing when you consider them below, and that it's just two months of what has been (in the south west at least) quite a mild winter so far. Then on top of that it assumes energy prices will fall enough to make the higher bills palatable when we have to pay back £40 a year for five years.
On top of this, I already pay lower rates as I pay by direct debit. Those on prepayment meters, sometimes through no fault of their own, pay more than the rates below, so are hit even more.
Whenever I look into it, our household falls into the 'lower use than average' category. We cook and heat using gas, with an older boiler and a hot water tank. I set the house thermostat pretty low and expect everyone to wear jumpers, always have.
In June last year our fix (with So Energy) came to an end, and we moved to Pure Planet. From what I knew about the energy market and prices, I already knew at this point we'd end up paying more than we had before.
Then in October Pure Planet (like 30 or so other suppliers in 2021) went bust, so we got moved to Shell Energy and our prices were set to the price cap.
(It's really a rate cap, not a price cap, but that's a debate for another day. Also worth noting what you pay on the price cap varies depending on where you live)
A few days ago Ofgem announced what the price cap from April looks like, and whilst no-one has a crystal ball it's entirely possible that the price cap later this year may go higher again.
The table is not entirely fun reading, and if you're currently still on a fix you're likely to have a helluva surprise when you come off it.
The standing charge alone will nearly double to what we were paying in 2020/2021, and I don't know which percentage to give as a final figure to think about. We paid around 17% more on the price cap than we would have expected to on the fix we had before Pure Planet went bust, but if it was on the April rates we would have paid over 80% more.
Like others here, this will be painful but I can economise and if anything it just means less will go to savings each month, but there will be others out there in work who this will hit really really really hard.
Our household income is a bit uneven, I earn OK money, my wife working as a teaching assistant not so much. If it wasn't for my wage this would be exceptionally painful. Add on to that that I'm quite militant over our energy use already which helps, for others who aren't used to keeping an eye on this things really will know about it once the bills start landing.
edit: I forgot my final thought which was one of the other things I came on here to post. For those who will really struggle, who may even struggle to afford to cook with these prices, £200 is nothing when you consider them below, and that it's just two months of what has been (in the south west at least) quite a mild winter so far. Then on top of that it assumes energy prices will fall enough to make the higher bills palatable when we have to pay back £40 a year for five years.
On top of this, I already pay lower rates as I pay by direct debit. Those on prepayment meters, sometimes through no fault of their own, pay more than the rates below, so are hit even more.
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