July 2024 Energy Price Cap Announcement

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For the period of 1st July 2024 to 30th September 2024 Ofgem has announced a fall in the energy price cap. This means the typical annual household bill will be around £1568 a year, a reduction of £122 from the April-June figure of £1690 a year. This works out to be a decrease of around 7%. It’s important to note that the annual consumption for a typical home is now calculated using lower figures than in 2023.

The energy price cap is represented as an annual bill based upon 2700kWh of electricity and 11500kWh of gas usage per year. This has fallen from 2900kWh electricity and 12000kWh gas. Most households are unlikely to be on a typical usage and the actual cost will vary depending on your consumption. Many households in Scotland are likely to have higher typical usage than the UK average due to our colder climate.

What the price cap actually is: a cap on the tariff suppliers are able to charge you. This is the unit rate, the cost per kWh of energy you use and a daily standing charge.

 

Tariff Table

From 1st April the average tariff in the UK will be:

Please note costs can vary on region and may vary slightly from what is represented below

Information is extracted from the Ofgem website here.

 

Direct Debit

Electricity

21.83p per kWh unit rate & 63.33p per day standing charge

Gas

5.40p per kWh unit rate & 31.66p per day standing charge

 

Prepayment Meter

Electricity

21.06p per kWh unit rate & 63.33p per day standing charge

Gas

5.16p per kWh unit rate & 31.66p per day standing charge

 

Standard Credit

Electricity

22.97p per kWh unit rate & 69.02p per day standing charge

Gas

5.68p per kWh unit rate & 35.25p per day standing charge

 

Comparison to previous price caps

While a fall in the price cap is very welcome, prices are still more than what we were paying before the energy crisis. The average tariff is still around 40% higher than what we would have been paying before it.

There is no longer any government support, last year’s Energy Bill Support Scheme ended and the Cost of Living payments have finished. So whilst prices may seem cheaper, if you received this support last year, you may find your budget is still stretched.

Households may be eligible for the Warm Home Discount when it opens again in the autumn.

 

Other Ofgem announcements

Standing charges for prepayment customers are now the same as those paying by direct debit, previously prepayment customers were charged an unfair ‘prepayment premium’ which resulted in standing charges being noticeably higher.

Ofgem is consulting on ending the  ‘Market Stabilisation charge’. This is preventing suppliers from offering cheap fixed-price deals that they typically use to attract new customers. It’s unlikely you’ll see any noticeable savings by switching energy suppliers. But you may be able to switch again later in the year.

As of April 1st, if you do choose to switch suppliers it will only take 5 days for the switch to be processed, down from 15.

While the prices have decreased, the £28 a year charge to each customer’s bill to help suppliers deal with the high volume of energy debt is still included. If you’re in arrears please read our Dealing with Debt guide here.

 

Get Advice

Worried about energy prices or debt? Our energy advisors can provide free and impartial advice to anyone in Fife. Get in touch to arrange a home visit or telephone advice appointment to see what you can do to save energy at home.

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