npower announces second gas and electricity price increase

Wednesday, 17 August 2011 12:26

npower has announced that it will put up its prices on October 1 – the second rise by the provider this year.

Gas prices are set to rise by an average of 15.7 per cent and electricity by 7.2 per cent, taking a typical household bill for a dual fuel customer from £1,149 to £1,282.

The company last hiked its prices in January, when gas went up by 4.9 per cent electricity by five per cent.

npower has become the fifth of the big six energy suppliers to announce a second price increase this year.

Ann Robinson, uSwitch.com’s director of consumer policy, said: “With the cost of wholesale energy now falling rapidly there has to be a question mark over whether energy companies have jumped the gun.

“If the fall in wholesale prices continues I would urge suppliers to pass these reductions on to their customers as quickly as possible to relieve some of the pressure we expect to see on winter energy bills this year.”

She added that simple steps like moving to dual fuel, paying by direct debit and signing up to a competitive online plan could reduce the price consumers pay for their energy.

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