British Gas cuts electricity prices

British Gas has cut its electricity prices by 10% - the last of the major suppliers to do so. The cut, which will come in with immediate effect, will save 4.5 million customers an average of £43 a year. The move was made possible by the fall in the cost of wholesale electricity, a company spokesperson said.

"The price of electricity on the wholesale markets has been falling, and we've always said British Gas will do what we can to lower prices when we can," Phil Bentley, British Gas managing director told BBC News. "Today, British Gas customers are paying less for their electricity than they were two years ago," Bentley said.

The company already cut its gas prices, also by 10%, on 19 February this year, benefitting more than seven million households, it said. Combined, the two price cuts will save UK households an average £132 on their gas and electricity bills.

All British Gas electricity customers on standard tariffs - including those with pre-payment meters - will benefit from the 10% price cut.

Whilst this is clearly good news for customers, and puts pressure on other suppliers, it is worth bearing in mind that British Gas actually raised electricity prices twice last year, by a total of 26%. British Gas customers are therefore advised to check if they could get a better deal with another supplier, or even if they could save money by moving to a cheaper British Gas tariff.

"Many customers are under the wrong impression that suppliers will automatically move them to a cheaper gas and electricity tariff, or that their supplier will tell them if such a tariff is available", observes Fred Rojahn, Managing Director of SuperSwitcher. "Unfortunately, this is not the case - suppliers make more money if you remain on an expensive tariff, so they have no incentive to help you out. The best thing you can do is to regularly check yourself if a better deal is available. The easiest way of doing this is with a free SuperSwitcher account - this means all the necessary data is already available when you need it, so you can compare tariffs at the push of a button. Within seconds, you know if it is worth switching, or not."

To set up your free personal SuperSwitcher account, just click on "Register" in the top right hand corner of the SuperSwitcher website; alternatively compare all UK gas and electricity suppliers now, and set up an account when you are done!
 

For Facebook users, this is even easier - either search for SuperSwitcher on Facebook, and install our free application, or register on the SuperSwitcher site with your Facebook log-in. To do so, just click on the blue "Connect with Facebook" button.