The energy regulator Ofgem confirmed the price cap for standard variable tariffs paid by direct debit will decrease to £1,641 per year starting April 1, 2026, representing an average saving of £117, or about £10 monthly. Chancellor Rachel Reeves pledged that £150 would be cut from average household bills from April by moving 75% of Renewables Obligation costs from bills into general taxation and scrapping the Energy Company Obligation scheme. The £150 reduction will primarily translate into customer bills through a cut to electricity unit rates, rather than as a one-off amount, according to multiple reports.
ON, OVO and EDF, have confirmed plans to pass on savings to all customers from April, multiple reports indicate. Households on fixed-rate tariffs will see bigger savings from the government's intervention than those on variable deals, according to research. The energy price cap drop is due in large part to the government removing certain levies from domestic bills.
However, war in the Middle East has caused global gas prices to spike, driving UK wholesale energy prices up by around 50%, multiple reports show. The US and Israel launched an attack on Iran on 28 February 2026, leading to increased global oil prices and impacting UK energy costs, according to research. 04 annually, multiple reports indicate.
48 per year based on average usage of 10 hours weekly, according to Citizens Advice calculations. 22, multiple reports show. Practical advice for consumers includes nearly six million households on standard tariffs needing to read their meter before April 1 to benefit fully from lower energy rates, according to Uswitch.
Customers without a smart meter should submit meter readings before or on April 1 to avoid having usage estimated and charged at higher March rates, Uswitch energy expert Ben Gallizzi advised. UK households with smart meters can get paid for electricity used between 8am and 4pm over the early May bank holiday weekend, up to £10, through Uswitch's Power Hours offer. Market responses to the Middle East conflict include UK suppliers pulling fixed-price tariffs or repricing them more expensively, with the number of fixed deals more than halving since last weekend, according to Uswitch data.
There are currently 19 fixed energy tariffs available, though they have increased in price recently, multiple reports indicate. Contradictory forecasts exist for July 2026 price cap increases, with energy bills forecast to rise from July 2026, affecting millions of households on the standard variable rate. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero confirmed there has been no change to plans to cut bills by £150 from April amid the Middle East conflict.
A spokesperson for the department stated that forecasts of July price cap increases are 'highly speculative' and not reliable. Broader energy market challenges include network costs increasing by £66 a year due to investment in upgrading energy infrastructure, according to research. The UK has limited gas storage capacity and declining domestic production, making it vulnerable to global gas price shocks, research indicates.
Non-commodity costs such as grid upgrades and policy levies account for more than half of a typical electricity bill and are expected to keep climbing, according to research. 5 billion owed to retail suppliers, research shows. The Warm Home Discount scheme costs were moved from the unit rate to the standing charge, affecting low-usage and high-usage customers differently, according to research.
The Middle East conflict has impacted other energy costs: heating oil prices have increased nearly threefold for off-grid households, with the UK government providing £53 million in support, research indicates. 5 pence between 28 February and 17 March 2026 due to the conflict, the RAC reported. Other household bill increases from April include major broadband and mobile providers hiking prices, with most customers facing a monthly bill increase of around £1 to £4, multiple reports show.
4%, increasing the average household bill by £33 a year, multiple reports indicate. 9% on 2025/26, according to the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government. Implications include unknowns about what specific measures the UK government will implement to target support at poorer households as mentioned by Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
It remains unclear how the Middle East conflict will continue to impact global energy prices and UK bills beyond July 2026, and the exact breakdown of the £150 reduction in household bills from April, including detailed impacts on different tariff types, has not been detailed.