Householders urged to be extremely cautious about fixing energy prices

People have been warned to “exercise extreme caution when thinking about switching and fixing” their energy tariffs.

The Warm this Winter Coalition pointed out that there are 337 fixed price deals on the market at the moment that are more expensive than the current Ofgem price cap.

Watch out for exit fees

The group also urged people considering fixing to pay attention to the exit fees some energy suppliers charge customers leaving a tariff early.

A report by the coalition found:

• British Gas charges an average exit fee of £62 – with just 6% of its deals coming with no exit fees
• just 12% of EON’s deals are exit-fee free
• only 14% of EDF’s tariffs are free of exit fees
• a mere 15% of Ovo’s deals come without exit fees
• Ecotricity charges the highest exit fees, averaging £150
• on the plus side, almost all tariffs for Good Energy, Octopus and Cooperative Energy have no energy fees

Deals worth considering

As unit costs came down this month but are expected to rise again in January, people may be able to save money by opting for a one-year fixed tariff with unit rates and standing charges below the current price cap.

These rates for a Direct Debit customer are:

• standing charges: electric 53p a day, gas 30p a day
• unit rates: electric 27p per kWh, gas 7p per kWh

But currently, there is just one dual fuel fixed deal below these levels and this comes with significant conditions attached.

According to the report, at the moment, the best variable deal could be achieved by going with different suppliers for your gas and electricity.