Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has announced that the Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) will be kept at it's current level (around £2,500/year for the average household) until the end of June 2023. 

However, the Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS), which was worth £67/month, has ended, with the last payments being made in March.


This article will outline the Energy Price Guarantee, a measure announced by the Government on 8 September 2022 (and updated on 15 March 2023) to provide further support for energy customers.

The Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) and Government Energy Price Guarantee (GEPG) are the same thing, you may have heard the name used interchangeably in the media or publications. 

The Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) is however different to the Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS). The Energy Bill Support Scheme (EBSS) delivered a flat £400 credit to electricity customers over 6 months until it ended in March 2023.

TABLE OF CONTENTS


What energy support has the Government announced?

The Government has outlined its Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) that caps energy prices for typical households until the end of June 2023. This is the maximum cost of each unit of gas or electricity a household uses. From 1 April 2023, the annual energy bill of the typical household will remain the same at £2,500, but remember this is not a limit to how much your annual bills will be. Your actual annual costs will depend on how much energy you use so your yearly bill could be greater or smaller than £2,500.

The EPG reduces the unit rates for gas and electricity from the values announced under Ofgem's quarterly price cap plans. Standing charges will not be affected and will change in line with Ofgem's guidance.

From 1 April, the Government's Energy Bills Support Scheme discount will no longer be applied to your monthly bills. Learn more here.

 

When will the Energy Price Guarantee be available?

From 1 October, all customers on our standard variable tariff So Flex will benefit from the Energy Price Guarantee. The Government has announced the new unit rates and you can check them here. 


What will I need to do to receive the Energy Price Guarantee discount? 

Don't worry, there's nothing for customers to do - we'll handle all of that for you and apply the discount automatically if you're on an eligible tariff - see below for which tariffs will benefit from the EPG.


Which tariffs will be affected by the Energy Price Guarantee?

All customers on our standard variable tariff, So Flex, and customers on some of our fixed rate tariffs will benefit from the Government’s Energy Price Guarantee.

Until the end of June 2023, the Government’s goal is to set the energy bills of typical-use households at around £2,500 a year by offering subsidised energy rates. For over 70% of our fixed tariffs, the unit rate is already priced below the Energy Price Guarantee unit rate, so they will not receive an Energy Price Guarantee discount.

The remaining 30% of fixed rate tariffs are priced above the discounted unit rates so will be eligible for the discount. For customers on these tariffs, the discount will bring their rates down to the discounted unit rates. This will be reflected in your monthly statement. 

A very small number of customers fixed their energy at a high price and so, despite being eligible for the discount, their discounted unit rates will still be higher than the Energy Price Guarantee’s target rates.

At the moment, our only available tariff is So Flex, our standard variable tariff. If your fixed rate tariff is coming to an end, you will automatically be moved onto So Flex.

 

How will this change my Direct Debit?

All customers will see a change in their Direct Debit to reflect the new rates set by the Government and the impact of the end of the Government's Energy Bills Support Scheme. Here, you can check how the Energy Price Guarantee will affect your tariff rates, but as a guide, we expect:

  • low energy users to pay less than they do today

  • typical users to pay about the same as they do today

  • high users to pay more than they do today but still a lot less than what was previously projected


Where can I find more information?

Our blog is a really useful source of information for your energy-related questions, including details of the Energy Price Guarantee, a guide to energy assistance ahead of winter, reasons for energy price changes, and much more.

This article also outlines everything you need to know about your energy this April.