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Save £'s by Switching Your Energy Bills

Save even more money by turning appliances off at the socket

Switch your energy provider and you could cut your bills by hundreds of pounds a year.
Earn up to £30 cashback when you switch - but check you really are getting the best deal.

Energy firms E.On and Scottish and Southern Energy have announced that they're going to raise gas and electricity prices by up to 29%. E.On said it would up its gas prices by 26% and electricity by 16% while Scottish and Southern will add 29.2% onto gas bills and 19.2% on electricity.

This isn't the end of the story either. Gas and electricity prices are set to keep rising over the next year at least. In fact, recent reports say that annual gas bills could rise from around £600 a household to more than £1000. Keeping this in mind, we recommend that you go for fixed or capped gas and electricity plans. Read more further down or go to our comparison service now and see what is on offer. Even if you couldn't be bothered to switch before, now is the time to do so.

Gas prices: don’t delay.

Energyhelpline is strongly recommending that fixed-capped gas plans are the way to go while the prices are still low. It’s a good idea to sort these without delay, as capped plans have a limited availability and will be changing as gas companies move their prices in line with the hike.

You can get capped deals for 12-18 months, but if you find something better along the way make sure there are no or very low cancellation fees. But remember, even if there are cancellation fees, they will be a small price to pay if your bill could tripled on a varying tariff.

How do I cut my bills?

Even if you switched last year you could be getting a better deal if you look around now. You can do this over the phone or online, so it’s really easy and will hardly take you any time at all.

Altogether there are around 6,000 possible tariffs on the market and you could go to a better one than you have now. Some of the better deals are only open to new customers, so it’s possible that the provider you’re with right now could have a better deal for you if you switch elsewhere and then come back again.

How do I do it?

Step 1: Use our calculator.

Head over to our independent switching comparison or use the calculator on the left-hand side of this page. This should give you a good idea of how much you can save.

Step 2: Calculate your savings.

Type in a few details about who your supplier is and how much your yearly bill roughly comes to. Click 'next' and up will come a list of the cheapest suppliers for your needs with the details of how much you can save. To get the most accurate information, enter the amount of energy you've used (in Kwh) on this page - the total will be on your last bill - rather than just the amount you've spent.

If you’re happy with what you see, you can switch there and then and start saving straight away. Not bad, eh?

Step 3: Savvy searching.

You can either make the switch right away, or if you want to be extra-sure you've got the best possible price, try a number of other websites. Other comparison sites to try include Energyhelpline, USwitch, MoneySupermarket, The Energy Shop. It’s worth checking them all out (or as many as you can be bothered with) before you switch to make sure you get the best deal.

Step 4: The best deal.

When you've chosen one, all the websites will ask you to click on the deal and then fill in the online application. This will include all your personal details, and if you wish to pay by direct debit you will have to fill in your bank details. This is so they can pass them on to the provider you have chosen to set up your direct debit.

Step 5: Changing suppliers.

Once you have filled out the application form, the website will pass on all the details to your new supplier who will then contact your old supplier and organise a transfer date. It is on this date that you should take your meter reading and then give it to your new supplier so they can organise your final bill with your old supplier for you. It is only after you've paid the final bill that you can cancel your direct debit with your old supplier.

Although all these websites offer the same basic service, there are a few differences. Here's a round up:

Energyhelpline - Say you can save up to £325 a year by switching with them. After the switch has been started, they send you an email with your transfer date and give you a point of contact with your new supplier. The transfer date should arrive within a month.

USwitch - Say you can save up to £325 a year by switching with them. They sort your switch out within six weeks and all you have to do is take the meter reading and cancel the old direct debit.

MoneySupermarket - Say you can save up to £325 a year by switching with them, but you'll also get a bonus payment of £30 for a dual supplier or £17.50 for switching only your gas or electricity if you do it with them. If you do want to get the bonus payment, just make sure you're really getting the best deal first by checking the other online comparison services.

The Energy Shop - Say you can save £150 a year by switching with them. They cover all UK providers licensed to provide domestic customers. The least commercial-looking site, with no adverts on the pages and a clear list of the companies they receive commissions from.

UK Power - This site doesn't organise the switching for you; you just get to see the deals and then, when you click through, you are taken to the homepage of the specific provider which means you have to have a lot more information ready to hand. It's may be worth having a look at UK Power's deals, but it'll probably be more work if you do choose to use it in the end.

Don't forget to go green

Another way to save money is don’t just pay less on the gas and electricity you use, but actually try to use less gas and less electricity and you can guarantee yourself a price cut.

There are also two companies that offer only green energy. They are called Good Energy and Ecotricity. Good Energy uses only 100% renewable electricity. It comes from wind, small-scale hydro and solar power generators from all over Britain. Ecotricity gets all of its energy from clean sources such as wind power.

Once you have your power tariff sorted, there are all kinds of small things you can do around the house to cut your bills, save the planet and even live healthier.

Only put enough water in the kettle for the drink you are making. If just 15 families filled their kettles with just enough water they would save a whole tonne of carbon every year. Also, when cooking, keep all lids, covers and oven doors closed. More than 20% of heat can be lost each time you open the oven door. Similarly – water boils up to 6% faster with a lid on the pan, cutting your energy bill on a daily basis.
Use energy-saving light bulbs throughout your home. You can save around £50 per bulb for the lifetime of each unit. Companies, such as GoGreenLights, offer a range of energy-saving lightbulbs.
Avoid tumble dryers. They sap energy quicker than daytime TV shows drain you of the will to live. A clothes line, if you have space, is still the most efficient and cheapest option. If you don't have outside space, get an indoor airer.
Fill your washing machine. It’s heating the water that costs you money, so washing with a half-full machine costs you about the same as washing a full load. The average British family does around 247 loads a year, so waiting a bit until you have a full machine will certainly cost you less - as will washing on lower temperatures. You don't need to wash any higher than 40 degrees for any type of wash. Higher temperatures take more energy and cost you more in the long-run. Use eco-friendly washing products too to cut down on more pollution.
Get double glazing. Small chinks in windows can lead to up to 20% of a home’s heat loss. The cost of installing double glazing will be recouped in the next few year’s heating bills. Or, if that is not an option, fit draft excluders around all windows and doors.
Wrap the back of your radiator. Put aluminium foil, shiny side out, behind radiators to reflect heat into the room.
Press the OFF switch. Leaving appliances (e.g. TVs, PCs, DVD players and set-top boxes) on standby is believed to waste an estimated 15% of the world’s domestic electricity per year. Also, watch less TV if you have an LCD screen. They use about four times the energy that the older TVs use.
Fit an efficient, condensing boiler. Check out Sedbuk to find the one that’s best for you, and get it serviced every two years.
Get a water meter. If you live on your own or use very little water you will probably find your bills going down anyway. If not, you will soon see how much water you waste each month and will be forced to cut back.
Turn the tap off. Never shave, brush your teeth, or wash your face while the tap is running. Use a cup or fill the basin. If your water is metered this will save money over the year.
Install cavity-wall insulation. About 40% of all heat loss is through the walls of the average home. Insulation usually costs less than £500 and the average energy saving per year is £130-160.