E.ON’s price freeze thaws – hike adds £243 million to nation’s energy bill

• 5 million E.ON standard variable customers to be hit with a 9% price rise from 26th April – 4% on gas and 14% on electricity

• Bills climb from £1,057 to £1,154 a year – a £97 increase per customer or £243 million in total

• E.ON blames increasing policy costs and ‘other costs it doesn’t control’ for the increases

• This follows hikes from five other major suppliers and means 7.2 million consumers will be paying over £530 million more to power their homes over the coming year

• Uswitch urges customers to reject hikes and save up to £618 per year by switching to a fixed deal****.

E.ON has announced that its dual fuel customers will be hit with a 9% price rise from 26th April, adding £97 to their energy bill. Gas prices will rise by 4% while electricity customers will be hit by a 14% hike.

The E.ON price rises will affect a total of 2.5 million households and add a collective £243 million to the nation’s annual energy bill which has now increased by over £530 million.

With E.ON blaming increasing policy costs and ‘other costs it doesn’t control’ for the increases, the move is a further blow for energy consumers following rises already announced by EDF, npower, ScottishPower, Co-operative Energy and First Utility.

Commenting on the news, Emma Bush, energy expert at Uswitch.com, says: “This is a crippling blow to energy customers and only serves to pile further pressure on household budgets, many of which are already at tipping point. While E.ON should be commended for its plans to reach out to its most vulnerable customers, millions will still be affected by this news. As usual, it’s the customers already overpaying on their energy – those sitting on poor value standard tariffs – who are being hit by this rise.

“E.ON’s price rise is the latest in a long line of hikes which have added over £530 million to the nation’s energy bill. The danger now is that the remaining major suppliers will follow suit –consumers are waiting for announcements from SSE as well as British Gas when its freeze lifts in August.

“If you want to protect yourself then the time for action is now. There are some great fixed deals available which can protect you from price hikes for anything up to four winters. Fixing your energy can be extremely valuable for those on a tight budget and could make all the difference in being able to afford to keep warm.”

Table 1: Energy suppliers’ price rises in 2017 so far