Overview

• The cap increases by 2% on October 1 to £1,755 a year for a typical direct-debit dual-fuel household in England, Scotland and Wales.
• More than seven million customers on standard tariffs are being told to submit meter readings by October 1 to ensure accurate billing, while smart meters send readings automatically.
• Suppliers are accepting backdated readings on set dates, including Scottish Power (Oct 5), E.ON Next (Oct 6), Octopus (Oct 8), EDF (Oct 9), OVO (Oct 11) and British Gas (Oct 14).
• Uswitch estimates the average home will spend about £140 on energy in October versus £63 in September, and says a one-week mismatch could cost roughly £17 per household, or around £125 million in total.
• Ofgem links the rise to higher electricity balancing costs and increased standing charges tied to the Warm Home Discount expansion, which is set to extend £150 support to about 6.1 million households.