Npower confirms gas price cut: will your energy bill get cheaper?


Updated on 08 February 2016 | 1 Comment

Another big supplier confirms a price cut – but you will have to wait until the end of March!

Npower has become the latest major energy supplier to announce price cuts.

The Big Six supplier is to reduce the price of its standard gas tariff by an average of 5.2%. That’s the equivalent of a £32 annual saving for more than a million customers on its standard tariffs. However the price cut won’t come into effect until 28th March.

Paul Coffey, CEO of npower, said that the firm had balanced the fall in the wholesale price of gas against increases in other costs the supplier faces in order to deliver this cut.

Gas price cuts across the board

Over the last few weeks we have seen a number of suppliers move to cut the prices they charge for gas on their standard tariffs.

E.ON was the first, announcing a cut of 5.1% to its standard gas tariff price, effective from 1st February. It was followed shortly after by SSE which cut prices by 5.3%, effective from 29th March, and then ScottishPower which last week announced a cut of 5.4%, effective from 15th March.

[SPOTLIGHT]The cuts follow pressure from both the Government and industry regulator Ofgem. Wholesale gas prices have fallen sharply over the last year and a half, by as much as a third. However, energy suppliers are accused of not dropping their prices in line with those drops as quickly as they should.

Don’t sit on a standard tariff!

It’s very important to remember that these price cuts only apply to customers on standard tariffs. If you are on a fixed tariff, then your bill won’t change.

The standard tariff is what you move onto when you get to the end of your fixed period, and is invariably the worst deal on offer from an energy supplier. So while these price cuts are welcome, the fact remains that if you benefit from them, you could actually save FAR more by shopping around for a new fixed tariff.

For example, if you are on a standard tariff from SSE, even after the price cut you will pay on average £1,068 a year for your energy.

That’s hundreds of pounds more than with one of these great fixed tariff deals!

Energy supplier

Tariff

Type of tariff

Average annual cost

Go Effortless

Domestic Energy January 2016

Fixed for 12 months

£764.10

SSE

One-Year Fixed v4

Fixed for 12 months

£774.71

Places for People

Together February 2017

Fixed for 12 months

£778.27

E.ON

Energy Fixed One Year v18

Fixed for 12 months

£779.32

npower

Fixed Energy Online March 2017

Fixed (until March 2017)

£782

GB Energy Support

Premium Energy Saver

Variable

£787

Extra Energy

Fresh Fixed Price February 2017 v1

Fixed (until February 2017)

£794

Extra Energy

Clear Fixed Price February 2017 v1

Fixed (until February 2017)

£801

Green Star Energy

Rate Saver

Fixed for 12 months

£804

First Utility

First Fixed March 2019

Fixed (until March 2019)

£814

Prices based on average consumption as measured by Ofgem of 12,500kWh of gas and 3,100kWh of electricity and a customer paying by monthly direct debit including VAT.

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