British Gas and E.on issue urgent message to customers after energy price guarantee scaled back

Energy giant says it understands families will be worried about bills rocketing from next April

Reviewed

Energy giants British Gas and E.on have issued a message to millions of customers who may be worrying their bills are going to shoot up again from April after it was announced the Energy Price Guarantee would be reviewed from then. The guarantee, which caps average energy bills at £2,500 a year, was due to run for two years but will now be reviewed from April following an overhaul of the government’s economic plan by new chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

Soar to £4,500

It has sparked fears bills could soar to £4,500 from next spring, piling even more pressure on struggling families. British Gas said it understood the announcement might be worrying its customers but said it didn’t know yet how bills would be affected.

Customers were urged not to contact British Gas, which said it would update them “with more information as it happens”. E.on said it was “in contact with the government” and said customers shouldn’t contact them.

Paying more for their energy bill

Scrapping the Energy Price Guarantee would result in millions more households paying more for their energy bills than expected from next year. It’s thought the government will instead move to more targeted support for the most vulnerable.

Reviewed in April 2023

While the promise currently caps typical bills to £2,500, people who use more will still pay over that amount. British Gas said: “You may have seen the government has announced that the Energy Price Guarantee will be reviewed in April 2023, rather than running for two years.”

“We know this will cause you a lot of uncertainty – until the government provide more details, we don’t know what this means for your energy bills from April onwards. There’s no need for you to do anything, we’ll update you with more information as it happens.”

E.on said: “The new chancellor has announced changes to the Energy Price Guarantee. We’re in contact with the government and will update our website when we have the full details, there is no need to contact us.”