There are new calls to abolish daily standing charges for energy which could save households up to £303 a year.
Martyn Day, SNP MP, has raised a petition in Parliament on behalf of his Linlithgow and East Falkirk constituents in a bid to help lower energy bills.
The standing charge currently costs around £303 per year and is covered by the energy price cap.
The energy price cap is the maximum amount energy suppliers can charge you for each unit of energy if one is on a standard variable tariff.
But energy companies are also not obliged to have a standing charge, and can charge less or more than what is set out in the price cap.
Between January 1 to March 31, 2024 the energy price cap is set at £1,928 a year for a typical household who use gas and electricity and pay by Direct Debit.
Mr Day said: “At a time of soaring energy costs and a cost-of-living crisis, there is no doubt that high standing charges are a major burden for many, and particularly for low energy users, who have less ability to reduce their bills by reducing energy consumption.”
The petition explained that in a time of soaring energy costs and a crisis in the cost of living, the high-standing charges imposed by utility companies represent a significant burden on household finances.
It said: “Scottish households bear some of the highest electricity standing charges in the UK, with ouseholds in Linlithgow and East Falkirk currently paying 62.1p per day on direct debit, and 69.2p per day on standard credit.
“The result of high standing charges is that lower energy users can save proportionally less money by reducing usage, thus disempowering these households and offering no incentive to reduce energy usage at a time when energy efficiency and environmental sustainability is so vital.”
He added that abolishing the standing charges would “encourage responsible energy use for the good of our planet”.
Energy bills are expected to fall by the equivalent of more than £300 a year this spring after a drop in wholesale gas prices, helping households struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
Cornwall Insight, a respected industry consultant, has forecast that average bills will fall by 16 percent on the previous quarter, and could reach their lowest since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
They expect prices to remain relatively low throughout 2024 compared with the previous two years – falling to £1,497 a year for a typical annual bill from July, before a small rise to £1,541 from October.
The forecasts will come as a welcome relief for Britons still facing higher outgoings on everything from food to water compared with historic averages, as inflation rates remain high.
