Experts have calculated how much our electricity and gas bills will soon be. The figures are staggering!
Price cap – this word has been electrifying us for many months. In April 2022, for the first time in history, the price cap rose to a seemingly sky-high level.
Indeed, the increases amounted to well over £500 per year – to nearly £2,000. Residents, however, did not feel the increases so strongly.
Why? The new rates have been in place since April, when it was warm enough outside that we turned the cookers and boilers on much less often.
Nowadays you can safely close in on £100 a month. And that’s still mainly for electricity – gas is now mostly used to heat water in taps rather than radiators.
We can enjoy this state of affairs for a few more weeks or so at most. And when we start “heating” in houses again for good, the price cap will rise in October.
Current projections suggest that it will amount to… note, hold on tight, over £3,200 a year. Yes, you read that right.
When the radiators get warm again, the meters will literally go crazy. If you were paying £150 a month after rates in April, it will be close to £300 after the changes.
Analysts have calculated that in January and February a family of four or five will be paying up to £500 a month for air and water heating. It used to be that for two or three such bills we could cover our costs for a whole year!
And unfortunately, one more thing is certain. Many families will not be able to cope with such costs.
While reports in the British media about having to choose between food and hot water in April or May were a little over the top, the changes this winter will be much more severe. It is worth knowing about them now.