On Saturday 1 July, the majority of households will see their energy bills fall as the Ofgem price cap plummets to £2,074 per year for a household with typical usage.
Households are encouraged to send meter readings to their energy supplier ahead of this coming into effect to ensure they are paying the lower prices as soon as possible.
Accurate readings will stop the household’s supplier from estimating usage and potentially applying the old higher prices to energy that is used after prices drop.
This is because although the Ofgem price cap is called a “cap”, the actual charge you will face is based on the amount of energy you use. Details of how you can do this can be found below.
How to take a meter reading and send it to your provider
Taking and sending a meter reading is quite simple, with households needing to first locate their meters and then make a note of the figures.
Once you have the figures, you can log into your online account or complete a form on your supplier’s website and enter the reading.
Many suppliers also accept meter readings via their app, WhatsApp, text message and telephone – but you will need to check your individual provider to confirm which methods are available.
Customers with a working smart meter or prepayment meter do not need to submit a meter reading as meter readings are already automatically sent to providers.
But prepayment users can ensure they are benefiting from the price reductions at the earliest opportunity in other ways.
Martin Lewis told Good Morning Britain viewers: “For people on non-smart electricity prepayment meters. The way you trigger it to put the new cheaper prices in is you top up. So what I would suggest you do is if you’ve got enough energy for this week, do not top up before Saturday.
“You need to top up on Saturday, even if you only top up the minimum – £1 – because when you top up on Saturday that then tells your meter the new rate and then from Saturday onwards it will be cheaper. If you don’t top up on Saturday, then there is potential you will be paying the higher price until you top up.”
Prepayment gas meters will automatically adjust to the new rate.
Does it matter if you cannot submit a reading today?
If you cannot do a meter reading today, then all is not lost.
As long as you make sure a reading is done relatively soon, you will reduce the chance of any negative impact on your bill.
MoneySavingExpert.com explains: “You can give a reading a few days before or after and any discrepancy should be minor.
“Or, some firms let you backdate your reading, so you take the actual meter reading on Friday 30 June or Saturday 1 July and note it down, but then submit it at a later date.
How are bills going to be affected?
The energy price cap sets a limit on the maximum amount suppliers can charge customers for each unit of gas and electricity, and the average household energy bill will fall by £426 a year from 1 July after Ofgem dropped its price cap following tumbling wholesale fuel prices.
It is the first time consumers on default tariffs have seen their energy bills drop in more than 18 months after prices surged during the pandemic and in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Current predictions from Cornwall Insight suggest that bills will fall further from October, from £2,074 per year to £1,933 per year on typical use.
But bosses from British Gas have suggested large falls are not likely.
Chris O’Shea, chief executive of Centrica – which owns British Gas -, said while he believes the worst of the energy crisis is over, bills will remain high.
The price cap was as low as £1,042 per year based on typical usage before the pandemic, and some fixed deals were even cheaper
