Energy suppliers will be made to offer tariffs with low or no standing charges, allowing customers to pay the costs as part of their unit rate instead, under plans from regulators.
He said Ofgem should move vulnerable customers who do not use much electricity to a “low or no standing charge” tariff by default, using an opt-out mechanism, so that people do not miss out on savings.
Standing charges are applied daily, regardless of how much energy the customer uses, and are used to cover the cost of supplying energy to homes and businesses.
Recent forecasts show that the amount people will pay per unit of electricity is set to go up again in April, even if most people’s bills will go down because of less usage.
“However, we also know that vulnerable, high-energy users – including those who rely on medical equipment at home or low-income families in poorly insulated houses – would suffer disproportionately if these costs were added to the unit rate for everyone.
