'Existing' British Gas, OVO, EON, Octopus customers handed free £149

An energy giant with five million customers has moved to launch the cheapest fixed deal that’s £149 less than the price cap. EDF’s “Essentials Fixed 1y Oct25” is £1,568 a year for a typical energy user paying by direct debit, making it £149 cheaper than the upcoming cap.

It means existing British Gas, OVO, EON and Octopus customers could be handed a free £149 for switching. The price cap changes every three months and EDF predicts that it will hit £1,690 in January before falling back down to £1,676 between April and June.

The energy supplier said that locking into this deal will save customers £122 over the course of this winter. Elise Melville, energy expert at Uswitch.com, said: “EDF’s new Essentials tariff could be a great option for households that want to fix their energy costs to beat the price rise coming on October 1.

READ MORE Drivers risk £5k fine and 'police action' if they ventured out on road yesterday

“It’s worth considering a fixed deal if you want to know what you’ll be paying from month to month. There are several fixed deals on the market that can save you money compared with the price cap." Rich Hughes director of retail at EDF, commented: “With the price cap jumping up by 10 percent in October we know customers will be concerned.

“We want to do as much as we can to help and with wholesale prices currently lower, we are pleased to offer a deal which is almost £150 below the October price cap.” Due to the ongoing volatility in global wholesale energy prices, EDF says the current deal could be removed at any time.

As of March 2024, the Big Six energy utility companies in the UK are: British Gas, Octopus Energy, E.ON Next, Ovo, EDF, and Scottish Power. This is based on prices at the beginning of the year and during the first quarter.