Energy Bills Set to Take a 40% Leap
Writes Dan Drage dan.drage@consumerchoices.co.uk
Gas and electricity costs are set to hit record levels this winter, according to a BBC report.
The increases could mean households paying £400 more a year on average for their gas and electricity, industry analysts have warned.
These rises, much steeper than anticipated, would heap extra pressure on homeowners already contending with higher food and fuel costs.
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"There is great reluctance in the industry to be the first to reveal a price increase"
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The exact magnitude of the price hikes has yet to be announced, although August has been mooted as the month where winter tariffs are most likely to be revealed. There is great reluctance in the industry to be the first to reveal a price increase, but one of the big six energy suppliers will have to bite the bullet.
Dave Prentis, general secretary of the public sector union Unison, had the following warning:
“A large rise in energy bills will have a massive effect on our workers and could lead to some pay negotiations being reopened”
He continues:
“We reached a three-year agreement on health at Easter when the retail prices index was much lower than it is now. If prices continue to spiral, that health agreement will be opened and if the government says we are not going to, then we will take industrial action”
Chris Eagle, Commercial Manager at Energy Choices, has a more conservative estimation:
“A 40% rise sounds like scaremongering to me, I’d estimate the price hikes will more than likely be closer to the 25% mark.”
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