Gas and electricity bills will be slashed by over £400-a-year today in a major boost to cash-strapped households.
The average domestic bill will fall by £426 a year from Saturday after a new price cap came into effect. It means the annual cost based on a typical usage will come down to £2,074 - a fall of about 17 per cent.
But this remains more than double the level before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered the energy price crisis.
Chief executive of charity National Energy Action Adam Scorer said many of the people it helps are “still struggling”.
Emily Seymour, energy editor of Which?, described bills as “unaffordable” for some.
Ofgem had maintained a cap of £3,280 which, with the Government’s energy price guarantee in place, kept bills at an average of £2,500.
While the cap is reduced tomorrow, the guarantee also ends, leaving a household with typical usage paying £2,074. Suppliers said the amount is nearly twice the 2021 bill of £1,271, adding costs would remain high for some time.
Chris O’Shea, chief executive of energy giant Centrica, told BBC Radio 4’s Today that prices are back down to pre-Russia invasion levels.
He said: “There is a danger that we get complacent because last winter was OK and because prices are stable now.”
A spokeswoman for suppliers’ group Energy UK said the price decrease will be “welcome news for customers”.
She added: “However, bills remain much higher than they were 18 months ago and many customers will continue to struggle.”
