UK to be hit with rising energy bills
December 17, 2007
A recent report has indicated that the start of the New Year could see many households in the UK facing huge hikes in their energy usage costs, with higher oil prices and increased wholesale energy costs forcing major suppliers in the UK to push up their energy costs.
Earlier this year many households were relieved to find that the cost of their energy usage had been slashed as the result of reductions in wholesale energy prices. This followed two years of hardship for many households that had been pushed into fuel poverty because of the high cost of energy usage.
However, it seems that the situation is set to worsen again, with British Gas already having announced an immediate rise on its market tracker energy plan. Those on this plan will see electricity usage prices rise by 14.8% and gas usage costs rise by 13.1%. With this news coming whilst the UK is in the depths of winter, many households could suffer. British Gas has been the first to announce rises in energy usage costs, but experts state that others will soon follow suit.
Industry experts state that by February of 2008 energy usage costs could have risen by 10-20%, which means that the average household could be paying over £1000 for their annual energy usage costs. Although British Gas is the first to announce hikes, industry professional state that this move has now set the wheels in motion for other suppliers to quickly do the same, so customers across the board are likely to be affected by the price increases.
One industry official spoke about the move from British Gas, stating: “It supports market rumours that prices are going to be on the up again, which will be a concern for consumers.”
17th December 2007Recent additions:
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- FSA states a quarter of financial websites unclear
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