Energy prices have HALVED to an all-time low but savings aren’t being passed on to customers

Andrew Long, Switchcraft’s founder, said: "Suppliers should use their variable tariffs as designed and pass on savings from lower wholesale prices to consumers.

"That said, we cannot rely on the big six to cut their own profit margins.

"Everyone should check now whether they can save by switching to a new, fixed energy deal.

"Wholesale prices are at their lowest point in years so the time to shop around is now."

While Will Owen, energy expert at comparison site Uswitch, told The Sun: "Lockdown has pushed wholesale gas prices to their lowest levels for 21 years, but many consumers may be looking at their energy bills and wondering why they haven’t enjoyed a similar fall.

“Most energy providers buy their power for standard variable tariffs years in advance, meaning that short-term drops in the wholesale price have little effect on these deals.

“The energy for fixed tariffs is bought nearer the time, meaning these deals are more responsive to changes in the wholesale prices and making them much better value for consumers.

"Current fixed tariffs are the cheapest they have been since 2018, with 12-month deals available for as little as £782.15, so now is a great time to get off your supplier’s SVT."

A spokesperson for trade body Energy UK told The Sun: "Suppliers purchase energy in different ways - some buy in the short term meaning they can react quickly to changes in wholesale price, but others buy much further ahead to protect against sharp increases when prices go up.

"Energy companies have committed to providing additional help during this ongoing crisis, including to any customers facing problems paying their bills due to the coronavirus situation."

A spokesperson for Bulb said: “Bulb is committed to transparency and fairness whilst helping people lower their energy bills and carbon emissions.

"We dropped prices for over a million customers in March this year, and we offer a single tariff with no loyalty tax so that customers know they are always getting the lowest prices.

"The long term picture is very uncertain and some of the factors causing prices to fall now may push them up later in the year, so we’re not planning any further changes to our prices right now.

"But when there are savings to be made we pass them on to everyone: every three months, if Bulb’s costs have fallen by more than £20 per year, so will tariffs."

The Sun has also contacted the big six suppliers - British Gas, EDF Energy, E.ON, nPower, Ovo Energy and Scottish Power - for comment.

Ovo Energy bought SSE in December last year, meaning it's now among the big six energy providers in the UK.

It told The Sun it reduced the standard variable tariff for Ovo and SSE customers in April in line with the latest price cap.

SSE recently also reduced its one-year and two-year fixed tariffs, while Ovo Energy said it plans to do the same ”in the near future”.

A spokesperson for EDF Energy said: "We buy the energy for our standard variable tariffs across the same period that Ofgem’s uses to calculate the level of the price cap, so the energy standard variable customers are using now was bought at a higher price between July 2019 and January 2020.

"We expect the lower wholesale costs seen in the past few months will be factored into the new tariff cap level which Ofgem will announce in August 2020.

"We offer our customers a range of competitive tariffs and actively encourage them, through regular communications, to review which tariff they’re on."

British Gas declined to comment.

It comes as energy bills have soared by £32 during coronavirus lockdown, with household bills overall set to increase by £792.

It's led older and low income households to cut back on energy use, a survey has found.

We explain how to get help with paying your energy bills and cut down your usage if you’re working from home.