Will you ration your energy use this winter as bills set to rise again?

Will you ration your energy use this winter as bills set to rise again? The typical energy bill for a household that pays by direct debit is rising from £1,663 a year to £1,723 from October - but will you be cutting back to save costs? Energy bills are set to rise again this winter - but will you be cutting down on how much gas and electricity you use to try and cut costs? The Ofgem price cap is rising by 4% from this October, taking the typical energy bill for a household that pays by direct debit from £1,663 a year to £1,723. It means Brits face the highest energy bills in three years. Energy bills had already gone up by 13% in July following the continued conflict in the Middle East. Analysts have also warned that prices could rise further in January, when the price cap is updated again. Cornwall Insight is forecasting a further 9% rise in the new year, which would take the average January bill up to £1,872 a year. But will you be taking action to lower your costs? Let us know by taking part in our poll below. Dr Craig Lowrey, Principal Consultant at Cornwall Insight, said: “Where January bills land will depend on whether the situation in the Middle East calms down in the next couple of months. “However, even if we saw an end to the conflict, lower stocks going into winter as demand increases mean falling bills in January is unlikely.” Neil Kenward, Ofgem Director General for Markets, said: “High international gas prices are continuing to drive energy costs in the UK. We welcome the Government’s intervention to remove VAT from electricity bills, without which customers would have faced even higher costs this winter.” The price cap applies if you are on a standard variable rate (SVR) tariff, which is a default tariff that you are placed onto if you are not fixed into an energy deal. It is estimated that 22 million people are covered by the price cap. But the price cap does not put a cap on how much you can pay for energy. Instead, it sets the maximum for how much you can be charged for unit rates of gas and electricity, as well as the daily standing charge. This means your bill is still based on how much gas and electricity you use, so it can be higher or lower than the price cap figure. The main price cap figure represents what a typical billpayer who pays by direct debit can expect to pay over a year, although it is updated every three months. There are different unit rates and standing charges for prepayment customers, or if you pay when you get a bill.