It seems a week hasn’t gone by this year without a price rise hitting the headlines.
As this year draws to a close, we thought we’d look back and try and make sense of the biggest year of price hikes on record.
Who raised their prices?
Our own research has found that 2018 had a grand total of 57 price rises. This is the worst year on record – in 2017 there were only 15 price rises.
This added £840 million added to people’s bills, around £74 per household.
The Big Six all raised their prices but the worst offenders were in fact some of the smaller suppliers. Economy Energy upped prices by a huge £311.
Three suppliers, Bulb, Outfox the Market and Pure Planet raised their prices three times.
Our price rise research has appeared today in the Guardian, This is Money, the Mirror and the Sun.
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Top Five Price Jumps
These are the worst jumps we’ve seen as a result of one or two rises.
| # | Energy supplier | Tariff | Previous SVT price | New SVT price | Difference (£) | Total Difference (%) |
| 1 | Economy Energy | Switch Saver | £811 | £1,122 | £311 | 38.30% |
| 2 | Solarplicity | Solarplicity’s Standard Variable | £887 | £1,141 | £254 | 26.90% |
| 3 | Flow Energy | Flow Variable | £1,027 | £1,213 | £185 | 17.65% |
| 4 | Green Star Energy | Rate Watch | £1,038 | £1,219 | £181 | 16.70% |
| 5 | Igloo Energy | Igloo Pioneer | £845 | £1,021 | £176 | 18.70% |
Big Six price rises
The Big Six all raised their prices this year.
| # | Supplier | Previous SVT price | New SVT price | Difference | Takes effect | |
| 1 | E.ON (1) | £1,123 | £1,153 | £30 | 2.7% | 19 April 2018 |
| 2 | British Gas | £1,101 | £1,161 | £60 | 5.50% | 29 May 2018 |
| 3 | Scottish Power | £1,148 | £1,211 | £63 | 5.60% | 1 June 2018 |
| 4 | EDF | £1,142 | £1,158 | £16 | 1.40% | 7 June 2018 |
| 5 | Npower | £1,166 | £1,230 | £64 | 5.30% | 17 June 2018 |
| 6 | SSE | £1,109 | £1,185 | £76 | 6.70% | 11 July 2018 |
| 7 | EON (2) | £1,123 | £1,178 | £55 | 4.80% | 16 August 2018 |
| 8 | Co-operative | £1158 | £1218 | £61 | 5.20% | 20 August 2018 |
| 9 | EDF | £1,142 | £1,212 | £70 | 6% | 31 August 2018 |
Why have there been so many price rises?
Rising wholesale costs are the main reason given by energy companies.
But the sheer number of price rises we have had over this year compared to previous years suggests there might be more going on.
And it’s to do with the energy price cap.
The price cap was introduced by the regulator Ofgem this year which sets a limit on how expensive a supplier’s standard variable tariff can be. This has been set at £1,137 and comes into force on the 1st of January 2019.
14 of these post-price-rise tariffs are currently higher than the price cap.
It would appear that suppliers are squeezing as much as they can out of their customers before the cap comes in.
Is there a way to escape a price rise?
As we have seen this year, price rises are pretty difficult to keep up with! Across the board, small to large suppliers upped their prices.
You can switch to a fixed deal but once that’s up you have to hunt for a deal and switch all over again.
It’s also important to make the right decision in terms of the supplier you go with.
The Big Six are well-known but do not offer the most competitive deals. While new small suppliers offer great deals but you may not have heard of them.
It’s very tricky to feel confident in the decision you’re making.
Auto-switching is the simplest way to dodge a price rise
This is where we can help! Sign up by clicking right here.
Our auto-switching service Look After My Bills keeps track of your bill price to make sure you never get stung by price rises. If your supplier announces a price hike, we’ll get you switched at the earliest opportunity. You don’t have to worry about a thing.
How is auto-switching different to switching?
We also tackle two of the main bugbears that make switching more taxing than it needs to be.
- Unlike a comparison site or finding a one-off deal with your energy supplier, once you’re signed up we do this for you year on year
- What makes us different to other auto-switchers? We don’t just move you to any old supplier. We do our research based on rankings, reviews and feedback from our members. It’s important that you go to a supplier you can trust.
To sign up with us at Look After My Bills to avoid over paying for your gas and electricity every again!
All 2018 price rises
| # | Supplier | SVT Tariff Name | Previous SVT price | New SVT price | Difference (£) | Difference (%) | Came into effect: |
| 1 | Ebico (1) | Ebico Zero | £1,101 | £1,161 | £60 | 5.50% | 16-Jan-2018 |
| 2 | Good Energy | Good Energy and Gas+ | £1,167 | £1248 | £81 | 7% | 18-Jan-2018 |
| 3 | Octopus Energy (1) | Flexible Octopus | £908 | £931 | £23 | 2.50% | 15-Feb-2018 |
| 4 | iSupply (1) | iVariable | £1,014 | £1,090 | £76 | 7.50% | 1-Mar-2018 |
| 5 | Pure Planet (1) | 100% Green | £860 | £908 | £48 | 5.60% | 31-Mar-2018 |
| 6 | ENGIE (1) | Safe And Easy | £980 | £1,038 | £58 | 5.90% | 4-Apr-2018 |
| 7 | Our Power | Our Best | £848 | £939 | £91 | 10.70% | 4-Apr-2018 |
| 8 | Ecotricity | Green Electricity + Green Gas | £1,201 | £1,258 | £58 | 4.80% | 14-Apr-2018 |
| 9 | Igloo Energy (1) | Igloo Pioneer | £845 | £871 | £26 | 3.10% | 16-Apr-2018 |
| 10 | Eon (1) | E.ON Energy Plan | £1,123 | £1,153 | £30 | 2.70% | 19-Apr-2018 |
| 11 | Bulb (1) | Vari-Fair | £855 | £878 | £24 | 2.80% | 28-Apr-2018 |
| 12 | Green Star Energy (1) | Rate Watch | £1,038 | £1,109 | £71 | 6.80% | 1-May-2018 |
| 13 | British Gas (1) | British Gas Standard Variable Tariff | £1,101 | £1,161 | £60 | 5.40% | 29-May-2018 |
| 14 | Scottish Power (1) | Standard | £1,147 | £1,211 | £64 | 5.60% | 1-Jun-2018 |
| 15 | EDF Energy (1) | Standard (Variable) | £1,142 | £1,158 | £16 | 1.40% | 7-Jun-2018 |
| 16 | OVO (1) | Simpler Energy | £1,097 | £1,150 | £53 | 4.80% | 8-Jun-2018 |
| 17 | npower | Standard SC | £1,166 | £1,230 | £64 | 5.50% | 17-Jun-2018 |
| 18 | Utility Warehouse (1) | Value | £1,125 | £1,175 | £50 | 4.40% | 1-Jul-2018 |
| 19 | SSE | Standard | £1,109 | £1,196 | £87 | 7.90% | 11-Jul-2018 |
| 20 | First Utility | First Variable | £1,132 | £1199 | £67 | 5.90% | 23-Jul-2018 |
| 21 | Outfox the Market (1) | Zapp! / Whamm! | £807 | £859 | £52 | 6.40% | 2-Aug-2018 |
| 22 | Bulb (2) | Vari-Fair | £878 | £923 | £45 | 5.10% | 12-Aug-2018 |
| 23 | Eon (2) | E.ON Energy Plan | £1,153 | £1,208 | £55 | 4.80% | 16-Aug-2018 |
| 24 | Co-operative Energy | Green Pioneer | £1,158 | £1,218 | £61 | 5.20% | 20-Aug-2018 |
| 25 | Solarplicity (1) | Solarplicity’s Standard Variable | £887 | £1,003 | £116 | 13.10% | 20-Aug-2018 |
| 26 | Flow Energy (1) | Flow Variable | £1,027 | £1,097 | £70 | 6.80% | 20-Aug-2018 |
| 27 | Tonik | Life Energy | £979 | £1,085 | £106 | 10.80% | 23-Aug-2018 |
| 28 | Green Star Energy (2) | Rate Watch | £1,109 | £1,219 | £110 | 9.90% | 28-Aug-2018 |
| 29 | Fischer Energy (1) | One Fair Tariff | £962 | £991 | £29 | 2.95% | 28-Aug-2018 |
| 30 | EDF Energy (2) | Standard (Variable) | £1,158 | £1,227 | £70 | 6.10% | 31-Aug-2018 |
| 31 | Igloo Energy (2) | Igloo Pioneer | £871 | £930 | £59 | 5.80% | 1-Sep-2018 |
| 32 | Spark (1) | Digital Saver v1 | £1,058 | £1,155 | £97 | 9.20% | 1-Sep-2018 |
| 33 | Avro Energy (1) | Simple Energy | £922 | £993 | £71 | 7.70% | 1-Sep-2018 |
| 34 | People’s Energy | The People’s Tariff | £864 | £946 | £82 | 9.50% | 3-Sep-2018 |
| 35 | Bristol Energy (1) | Standard Variable | £997 | £1,079 | £82 | 8.20% | 8-Sep-2018 |
| 36 | Bristol Energy (2) | Standard Variable | £1,079 | £1,144 | £65 | 6.20% | 9-Sep-2018 |
| 37 | GnERGY | GnERGY Standard Variable | £1,145 | £1,248 | £104 | 9.10% | 16-Sep-2018 |
| 38 | Solarplicity (2) | Solarplicity’s Standard Variable | £1,003 | £1,141 | £138 | 13.80% | 25-Sep-2018 |
| 39 | Spark (2) | Digital Saver v1 | £1,155 | £1,195 | £40 | 3.50% | 26-Sep-2018 |
| 40 | British Gas (2) | Standard Variable | £1,161 | £1,205 | £44 | 3.80% | 1-Oct-2018 |
| 41 | ENGIE (2) | Safe And Easy | £1,038 | £1,117 | £79 | 7.60% | 1-Oct-2018 |
| 42 | iSupply (2) | iVariable | £1,090 | £1,182 | £92 | 8.40% | 1-Oct-2018 |
| 43 | Pure Planet (2) | 100% Green | £872 | £921 | £49 | 5.60% | 1-Oct-2018 |
| 44 | Economy Energy | Switch Saver | £811 | £1,122 | £311 | 38.30% | 7-Oct-2018 |
| 45 | Scottish Power (2) | Standard | £1,211 | £1,257 | £46 | 3.80% | 8-Oct-2018 |
| 46 | OVO (2) | Simpler Energy | £1,150 | £1,225 | £75 | 6.50% | 17-Oct-2018 |
| 47 | Ebico (2) | Ebico Standard | £1,161 | £1,259 | £98 | 8.40% | 22-Oct-2018 |
| 48 | Igloo Energy (3) | Igloo Pioneer | £930 | £1,021 | £91 | 9.80% | 25-Oct-2018 |
| 49 | Avro Energy (2) | Simpler Energy | £993 | £1,057 | £64 | 6.40% | 1-Nov-2018 |
| 50 | Outfox the Market (2) | Zapp! (subject to usage type) | £859 | £922 | £63 | 7.30% | 1-Nov-2018 |
| 51 | Utility Warehouse (2) | Value | £1,175 | £1,210 | £35 | 3.00% | 1-Nov-2018 |
| 52 | Fischer Energy (2) | One Fair Tariff | £991 | £1,064 | £83 | 7.40% | 1-Nov-2018 |
| 53 | Bulb (3) | Vari-Fair | £923 | £1,025 | £102 | 11.00% | 9-Nov-2018 |
| 54 | Flow Energy (2) | Flow Variable | £1,098 | £1,213 | £115 | 10.85% | 11-Nov-2018 |
| 55 | Octopus Energy (2) | Flexible Octopus | £955 | £1,060 | £105 | 11.00% | 20-Nov-2018 |
| 56 | Robin Hood Energy | Robin Hood Energy Evergreen | £1,039 | £1,194 | £155 | 14.90% | 29-Nov-2018 |
| 57 | Outfox the Market (3) | Pow! | £922 | £988 | £66 | 7.16% | 16-Dec-2018 |
| Average | £1027 | £1101 | £74 | 7.40% | |||
