Energy bills warning: Households to see costs rise by £155 a year as cost of living crisis to continue
Experts are warning that energy bills are likely to rise again
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Energy bills are forecast to rise by £155 for the average households this winter, according to new research.
Finance specialists are warning that the cost of living crisis is not yet over for millions of families based on analysis of Ofgem's energy price cap.
Under the regulator's cap, the amount that a supplier can charge for their default tariff is limited for those with average energy usage to a certain sum.
However, it should be noted that the price cap is not applicable to those on a variable tariff and anyone who's usage is more than average.
This time last year, the average annual household energy bill sat at £1,976.
Over the last 12 months, this cost has fallen with the average bill for Q3 sitting at £1,568 per year.
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The cost of living crisis has pushed energy bills to new heights in recent years GETTY The average annual dual-energy bill has fallen by 7.2 per cent, the equivalent of £122m in the last quarter alone.
It is now 20.6 per cent under the amount it was at the same time last year, representing a drop of £408.
As a result, families are finally seeing more affordable energy bills amid the ongoing cost of living crisis.
However, experts are sounding the alarm that costs are likely to jump in the later half of the year.
Based on current estimates, Rift forecasts the energy price cap and average annual dual-fuel energy bill will rise in the last quarter of 2024.
Even though this is under the price cap's total last year, it will be 9.9 per cent higher compared to the current cost of heating a home.
Households will see their energy bills jump by £155 a year as a results.
The firm predicts that the number of household income required to run a home will climb to 4.4 per cent.
Bradley Post, the managing director of Rift, issued a warned to households over the pending rise in energy costs.
He explained: "The cost of living crisis has been a prolonged thorn in the side of the nation’s households and high energy bills have been one of the contributing factors in this.
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Ofgem's price cap has fallen in recent months
GETTY"So many households may have finally been able to breathe a sigh of relief having seen a reduction in their tariff in recent months.
"Unfortunately, this respite isn’t set to last and energy bills are set to climb once again come the end of summer.
"Whilst this increase may not be as dramatic, it could still place pressure on those households in the toughest financial spots and so the best course of action is to see if you can lock in a fixed tariff now, before prices start to climb.”
The next energy price cap announcement from Ofgem will take place on August 27. This will cover October 1 to December 31.