Energy price cap announcement: “The wrong message, at the worst possible time”
Georgie Frost, consumer advocate at GoCompare Energy, said: “Today’s announcement sends the wrong message, at the worst possible time. We are about to go into winter – the season of the biggest energy bills - after a period of unprecedented energy price rises and with 11 million households still sitting on expensive standard variable tariffs.
“It’s good that the government have energy firms and bills within their sights, but it is important to remember that this is only temporary, it’s a sticking plaster. I hope they don’t put their feet up after this and think ‘job done’. It’s far from done. Policymakers need to continue to promote the switching revolution which has been gathering pace over the last couple of years. We need to maintain that momentum and encourage more households to take control of their bills, rather than just accept this handout.
“For people who can’t or won’t switch to a better deal, this will save them £75 a year on average. Whether that means they will be paying a ‘fair’ price for their energy is still very debatable.
“Since the latest round of energy price increases began in March 2017, the big energy companies have all raised their dual fuel standard tariffs by more than £75. Therefore, even with the cap, most households still on a standard tariff will be worse off than they were 18 months ago.
“The downside of the cap is that millions of households could think ‘job done – I’ve saved money on my energy bills’, when in reality, they are still paying far too much. By shopping around and switching provider they could save over £250.”
For more information or to compare energy tariffs today, visit: www.gocompare.com/gas-and-electricity/.
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For further information please contact:
Anders Nilsson or Martyn John at GoCompare on 01633 654 054 / 01633 654 725
Gordon, Jason or Liz at MAW Communications on 01603 505 845
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Notes to editors
About GoCompare
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When it launched in 2006, it was the first comparison site to focus on displaying policy details rather than just listing prices, with the aim of helping people to make better-informed decisions when buying their insurance. GoCompare has remained dedicated to helping people choose the most appropriate products rather than just the cheapest, and has teamed up with Defaqto, the independent financial researcher, to integrate additional policy information into a number of its insurance comparison services. This allows people to compare up to an extra 30 features of cover.
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For more information visit www.gocompare.com and www.gocomparegroup.com