Martin Lewis gives ‘urgent’ energy bill advice amid Iran ceasefire
Monetary expert Martin Lewis has urged households to act quickly to secure lower energy bills for the summer amid the volatile situation in the Middle East.
The United States and Iran agreed to a ceasefire at the eleventh hour earlier this week, announcing a deal less than two hours before President Donald Trump’s deadline for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The virtual closure of the waterway last month triggered a massive surge in oil and gas prices, negatively impacting economies around the world and prompting energy firms to pull most fixed-term contracts from the market.
A fixed-rate energy agreement guarantees that customers will pay a set rate for their energy over a set period of time, usually a year. Meanwhile, those on variable tariffs will see their unit tariffs change with the energy price cap.
Oil and natural gas prices began to fall after the ceasefire declaration, causing some energy companies to bring their fixed agreements back to the market.
But Mr Lewis warned it could be short-lived.
The monetary expert wrote on social media: “Urgent. For the first time in weeks, due to the ceasefire, there are several energy fixes cheaper than the new April price cap. These could disappear quickly if things change. If you are in the Cap and want to avoid the big hike in July, this will do it.”
In February, Ofgem set the cap for April-June at £1,641; This represents an average reduction of £117 and is broadly in line with Labour’s pledge to cut energy bills by £150.
This means that bills are effectively protected until July. A forecast by Cornwall Insight before the ceasefire was announced last week suggested this could add up to as much as £288 for the average household.
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The cheapest fixed deal currently on the market comes from Outfox Energy, priced 1.6 per cent lower than the current price cap. E.on is also offering a deal 0.1 percent below this level.
The fluidity of the situation means it is unclear how July’s price ceiling will be affected by the ceasefire, but experts and politicians have warned the figure could still be much higher than pre-conflict estimates.
Labor MP Graeme Downie, who sits on the energy select committee, said: Independent He said on Thursday that “it will still take a long time for prices to return to normal” and that the full impact of the crisis on the cost of living could be felt “at least until 2027/28”.
