MILLIONS of households will see their energy bills rise by hundreds of pounds this winter.
Energy experts at Cornwall Insight have predicted that the energy price cap is set to rise from £1,971 to £3,582 on October 1.
But energy prices could hit £5,000 a year for some households in April, now that Ofgem intends to update the energy price cap every three months.
For typical households, it's expected that bills will hit £4,427 a year and for larger household the figure will likely hit £5,112 a year.
These hikes will leave many wondering how much their monthly direct debits will rise by over the coming months.
But we've crunched the numbers so you don't have to.
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We've worked out how much a typical small, medium and large household currently pays each moth and how much they'll be forecasted to pay after each price cap change in October this year, and in January, April and July 2023.
You shouldn't expect to be charged the exact figures we've crunched.
These are based on national averages and it's important to remember that the price cap is only a limit on what suppliers can charge – not how much your bills will be.
If you use more energy, expect to pay more. And if you use less your account may be in credit and your direct debits may be reduced to reflect this.
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A small household made up of one to two people uses around 8000kWh of gas and 1,800kWh of electricity every year.
Right now, these households pay roughly £111 a month on their energy bills.
A medium households is made up of two to three people and uses an average of 12,000kWh of gas and 2,900kWh of electricity every year.
The average monthly bill for these households under the current price cap sits at £164 a month.
And that leaves larger households often made up of four to five individuals that use roughly 17,000kWh of gas and 4,300kWh of electricity every year.
Right now monthly bills for these homes average £221.
From October, small households will pay £245 a month on their energy bills with medium households paying £299 and larger homes £356.
From January, bills will rise again and small homes will see their direct debits hiked to £302 a month, medium homes to £356 and larger home £410.
By April next year monthly energy bills will rise again.
Small homes will see their energy costs shoot to £315 a month, medium sized homes to £369 and larger homes to £426.
The price cap is predicted to drop slightly to £3,810 in July – though we've held off calculating how much people will have to pay monthly at this point as the wholesale price of energy may change considerably by this point.
Justina Miltienyte, head of policy at Uswitch.com, said: "If you are struggling with the cost of energy, contact your supplier as soon as possible so you can agree on a more affordable payment plan.”
If any of your bill rises seems unfairly high, you can challenge your bill with your energy supplier.
How to challenge your bill
If you pay your energy bill by direct debit, then it is assumed that this monthly amount should be "fair and reasonable".
If you don't think it is, you should complain directly to your supplier in the first instance.
If you're not happy with the outcome you can take it to the independent Energy Ombudsman to dispute, but there are a few steps before you get to that stage.
Your supplier must clearly explain why it's chosen that amount for your direct debit.
If you've got credit on your account, you have every right to get it back – although some experts recommend keeping it there through the summer, so your bills don't go up in the winter when you use more energy.
Your supplier must refund you or explain exactly why not otherwise and the regulator, Ofgem, can fine suppliers if they don't.
If you are disputing a bill, taking a meter reading is a must. If it's lower than your estimate, you can ask your provider to lower your monthly direct debit to a more suitable amount.
Martin Lewis' MoneySavingExpert team says that if you find you're always in credit, you should request the direct debit be lowered to reflect your actual annual usage and meter readings.
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But beware that you don’t end up in debt later on with a bigger catch up bill at the end of the year from underpayments racking up.
If you don't have success in negotiating a lower payment then you can put in a complaint to the Energy Ombudsman.
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