This part of the article made me smile, I think it’s very rare that people live in a stairwell.
Mr Maciver later found a letter from a debt collection firm addressed to someone who did not live in the stairwell.
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Warning it’s the Daily Fail 
other news vendors are available, just thought I’d dirty my hands posting an article from them
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For balance, will note that the Guardian also have a story:
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For those on rolling default tariff that is capped I don’t see that happening in April 2022.
With the current cap at £1,277 for the average it would mean.
+40% = £1,787.80
+50% = £1,915.50
Current fixed “deals” are trying to trick people into £2000+ at the moment.
However I can’t see them raising that £1,277 cap straight to £1,915.50
I’m guessing £1,500-£1,600 will be the new cap so they don’t cripple everyone, still that’s a good 20-30%.
And then potentially raise it to £1,900 in October 2022 if everything is still chaotic.
They may swap to reviewing every quarter so potentially bumping it up a couple hundred each time.
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I always post The Guardian thought I’d have a change
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Martin Lewis (whatever you think of him), seems to think it’ll be like £1,600-£1,800
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He’s usually on the ball so probably right.
I still think it’s a tell people 50% initially to soften the blow and then when it’s +30% they think we’ll it could have been worse.
It should be £2000+ based on actual costs but jumping people straight to that would cause so much financial destruction. I’d be really surprised if they stick with reviewing every six months.
How are the big boys not failing if the cap is at half the real cost? Except mugging them off into fixes? (Which could still do them over if it keeps rising next year as it has this)
Mugging them into fixes, already having backups of cash, or having taken investment/fund raise recently.
Ouch.
I’m sticking with Octopus and think I’ve paid the same all year. £90pm which has averaged perfect as the credit is slowly going down this past three month.
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Hedging supplies at lower prices
Essentially it’s the big five with many billions to play with who bought the contracts when the price was still relatively low. The suppliers are obligated to sell at those prices.
The little guys playing with millions were essentially playing a game of buy at spot and add a bit on top and then sell it on.
The problems came when they were then basically forced to buy at the current prices and sell on for dramatically lower with the cap.
The big five will start to sweat if it continues high though as they’ll eventually be forced into buying higher than selling too. However with many many billions in the bank they can afford to take the hit.
What’s happening now is the big five are pretending the default cap doesn’t exist when telling existing customers near their end of their current fixed deal and suggesting the new fixes are the best available.
If Ofgem actually did their job they would be forcing them to display what rolling onto the default cap is compared to the fixed.
If you had the average use and saw the following then it would give people the information to make a fair decision
£1,277
default rolling cap
£2,100
Special 1yr fixed deal December 2022
£2,150
Special 2yr fixed deal December 2023
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There needs to be some contesting of the offers. It sssms to be praying on the illinformed and is surely false advertising?
I suppose that is the comment around what Ofgem should do!
They would argue, I’m sure, that the price cap could go up by more than we’re expecting, which might actually make those 2 year fixed deals good value.
(That said, me? I won’t be joining a fixed rate tariff any time soon.)
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It’s all a gamble but stacked against rolling default atm as potentially the better option, unless it all goes tits up.
If you were on average usage and take a one year fixed now at say £2000 year you need to be thinking the cap would be raised significantly higher than £2000 in the April 2022 and October 2022 adjustments.
So if it goes
£1277 (Oct 21) > £1700 (April 22) > £2100 (October 22)
With one year lock in you would be winning in Nov/Dec 2022 but would have lost out significantly in the other ten months.
It’s also whether you think longer term it’ll go say.
£2100 > £2500 (April '23) > £3000 (October '23)
Then the £2000 2yr lock in loses in year one but wins in year two.
Or
£2100 > £1700 (April '23) > £1300 (October '23)
That also could go out the window if they start reviewing it every four months, or every three, two, or even every month to continuingly adjust the cap if the energy providers get their wish.
I agree but on a 1 year fix say you sign up now. You get 4 months before the cap (Jan-Apr) and 8 after. The cap would have to go to £2,200 or you will definitely be out the money. Longer fix less clear cut but nothing is indicating that cap will go up 80% needed just to break even. Seems very untoward.
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Although we at the end of Dec given this
£1277 (Dec 21)
£1277 (Jan 22)
£1277 (Feb 22)
£1277 (Mar 22)
£1700 (Apr 22)
£1700 (May 22)
£1700 (Jun 22)
£1700 (Jul 22)
£1700 (Aug 22)
£1700 (Sep 22)
£2100 (Oct 22)
£2100 (Nov 22)
((1277×4)+(1700×6)+(2100×2))÷12
£1625.66 (£135.47 monthly)
Vs
£2000 (£166.66 monthly)
So the hypothetical fixed deal would be £374.34 worse.
With a two year you would need to be think it’s going to be much much worse to break even or win.
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I agree. I dare say the energy companies would also argue that, simply because they are forced to sell one product below cost value (i.e. standard variable tariff), does not mean they should offer all their products below cost value, nor are they under any obligation to withdraw all products from which they make a profit.
(Again, I’m playing devils advocate. I’m sticking with my variable tariff.)
(The whole energy market is utterly broken right now. 
)
Just been told my heating prices are going up from 5.6p/kWh to 8.4p/kWh. Not the end of the world but still.
The standing charge remains the vast vast majority of my bill.