Martin Lewis warns households to fix energy bills now before October price rise
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Ofgem has confirmed another price hike in October, and Martin Lewis is urging households to act quickly to lock in cheaper fixed tariffs.
Energy prices are set to rise again in October after regulator Ofgem confirmed an increase in the energy cap.
The cap is the maximum amount energy companies can charge and will rise to £1,775 for an average household. The increase in October means energy bills will have almost doubled over the last few years, as the energy crisis impacts millions of homes in the UK.
Experts are warning householders to act now to avoid the worst of the energy price hike by switching to a fixed term contract as soon as possible.
Martin Lewis says on his Money Saving Expert site says fixed price tariffs are on average nearly 17% less than the October Cap rate.
He says: “That means for those on a capped tariff, switch to a fix and your energy use immediately costs less and is guaranteed to do so until at the very least the 31 December, but almost certainly well beyond that too...Analysts' current predictions are that the Cap will drop slightly in January 2026 (down 2% ish), then rise again in April (up 5% ish) – though this involves some crystal ball gazing as much can change.
Household can switch by heading to providers such as Utility Warehouse, which is offering £400 to help with the cost of cancelling existing contracts and cheaper tariffs than the new energy price cap.
Switching works by entering your details here. The new provider will then cancel your existing contract and provide up to £400 towards the cost of cancellation. It will then place you on a fixed term contract of your choosing, allowing you to freeze prices at that rate for 12 months and avoid any further price rises.
According to Utility Warehouse: “A fixed rate tariff essentially 'locks in' a price for your energy and means the price you pay per unit of energy (unit rate) stays the same for the length of your contract — usually 12 months. This tariff has become popular in recent years thanks to fluctuating energy costs, as the set prices mean that even if market rates go up, your unit rate won't change.”
Providers are also offering variable tariffs at lower rates than the energy price cap. You can see the variable tariff options here.
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