Gas & electricity prices hikes of 15% to 35% are predicted this summer.

The price of wholesale gas has heavily increased and the utility companies are signally rises that could add another £200 a year on many families’ bills.

How to beat the rise

If you’ve never moved supplier you can cut your bills by up to a massive 20% by switching provider. If that’s you, you’re probably using British Gas or Scottish Gas for gas, and your regional electricity company for electricity.

If you have switched before, you may only save around 10% as you've already had the big ‘first switch gain’.

It’s also worth considering a capped tariff right now as this'll mean the price you pay is fixed for a year or two. The cheapest capped tariffs are roughly 10% more expensive than the cheapest uncapped tariffs. Yet if prices rise as predicted you’ll save… and if not you can always switch back.

For more information on how to choose the right type of tariff read Martin’s full Gas & Electricity Switching guide.

Using a comparison site

These are companies which you can tell where you live, and the quantity and type of energy you use, to find out which provider will offer you the cheapest rates. They operate on the phone – when there’s someone there to talk you through it – or via the internet where you do it yourself.

They include The Energy Shop (0845 330 7247), SwitchwithWhich (0800 533 031), Uswitch (0800 404 7908) and more (a full list of accredited comparison sites is on the Energywatch website

Switch online and get added up to £30 cashback

If you’re prepared to go to the web, you can get additional cashback in one of two ways.

• Get up to £30 or a crate of wine from comparison sites
  
  It’s possible to get paid cashback when a comparison site switches you of up to £30 or even a crate of wine. This is because the comparison sites will give you a cut of the revenue they earn for switching. Yet you don’t get this if you go direct to the comparison sites, only via the special links at moneysavingexpert.com.
  
  This is because a price war broke out between the companies vying to get the traffic from the site; and cashback was used as a competitive weapon. MoneySavingExpert.com is owned by our presenter, Martin Lewis, and as well as you getting the cashback, switching via these links also generates revenue for that site.
  
  
• Possibly bigger but less common cashback
  
  It may also be possible to get cashback direct from suppliers. So once comparison sites have told you who’s cheapest, it’s always worth a quick click to the site direct to see if it has any special offers.
  
  A further alternative system of getting cashback is available to members (membership is free) of cashback sites like TopCashback, Quidco and Cashback Kings.
  
  These sites give you a cut of their revenue if you buy or transact anything through them so while comparison sites are included, the more lucrative method of using them is once you’ve found the specific energy supplier you want to switch to via using a comparison site, see if that energy supplier itself is listed on the cashback site and how big the cashback will be.
  
  

Other tips to cut costs

• Even if you’re on a prepayment meter you can switch and save
  
  The comparison services allow you to see who offers the cheapest prepayment charges. Yet if you can switch away from a meter (it’ll often be credit scored) do so, as that’s much cheaper.
  
  


• Grants for being green
  
  There’s a vast range of grants available for improving home heating and insulation, just go to the Energy Saving Trust’s Energy grant search. For more grants available for all types of home improvement, see Martin’s full Find A Grant article.
  
  
  
• Is there someone aged over 60 living in your home?
  
  If so, Eon’s Staywarm tariff could work out cheaper. The bill doesn't depend on the energy used. Instead, you pay a fixed rate over a year.
  
  
  
• Cut your water bills
  
  The easy rule of thumb is “if there are more bedrooms in your house than people, check out getting a water meter.” Possible savings are in the hundreds. Read Martin’s full Cheap Water Bills article for more details.
  

Use less energy

If you’re on a variable tariff, then the less energy you use the less you pay. So try to turn lights off where possible, turn electrical items off rather than leaving them on standby and put a jumper on if it’s cold rather than turning the heating up. The Energy Saving Trust has some great tips.

We invited two volunteers into the studio to see how much they could save by switching their energy supplier. Both did well and between them they could cut their bills by up to £360 a year which would represent a cool 17% saving.