ENERGY bills are predicted to fall by £137 a year this summer following a hefty rise in the coming days.
Cornwall Insight predicts the yearly cost of running your gas and electricity will fall to £1,732 this July, marking a 7% drop from April’s price cap.
The drop will mark the first time over three quarters that energy bills will fall for customers.
This latest prediction comes ahead of bills going up on average from April 1.
Dr Craig Lowrey, Principal Consultant at Cornwall Insight, said: “The latest forecast drop will bring some relief to households and the government, offering a welcome sign that energy prices are moving in the right direction.”
Looking ahead, experts at the firm predict bills to rise again in October, before falling again at the star of 2026.
The group said a potential cease fire between Russia and Ukraine brought some stability during February.
However, questions of the role of the US army brought fresh uncertainty to the market.
He added: “However, we mustn’t get ahead of ourselves. While prices are falling, recent patterns show the impact that wholesale market volatility can have on bills in the space of just a few days.”
In practice, most people will use less energy in the spring and summer months.
It is important to remember the figures released by Cornwall today are just a prediction.
The next price cap for July 1 until September 30 will be announced by Ofgem in May.
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”Watch how clever contraption helps cut my energy bills by £130 a year” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6365295976112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]The cap impacts around 26million households on standard variable tariffs (SVTs) in England, Wales and Scotland .
Today’s news comes as households are bracing for the average energy bill to rise by £111 a year, or £9.25 a month from April 1.
The latest rise is because of an increase in gas prices across Europe, caused by a slump in the amount of gas that is held in storage across the continent.
Despite the rise, average bills remain considerably lower than during the peak of the energy crisis, which was fuelled by Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The war caused a spike in an already turbulent wholesale energy market, driving up costs for suppliers and customers.
Before the energy price shock, a standard annual bill was £1,084.
[authenticated-scripts src=”%3Cscript%20class%3D%22palin-poll%22%20src%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fpollingwidgets%2Fv3%2Fwidget.js%3Fquestion_id%3D110697%26game%3Dpolling%22%3E%3C%2Fscript%3E” type=”embedded” width=”100″ /]Should you switch and fix?
A fixed tariff can be a helpful way to make sure you are not at the mercy of a fluctuating market if the price per unit looks like it will go up.
However, it is important to remember that it does not mean your bill will be the exact same each month.
Your supplier locks in the price you pay per unit, but not how many units you consume.
The more energy you use in a month, the more you will have to pay.
However, these tariffs can be a helpful way to protect yourself from price hikes if gas and energy prices go up.
These types of contracts can also be a helpful way to manage your monthly spending.
But if energy prices come down you will still have to pay the price you agreed at the start of your contract.