From 1 April, some parts of your energy bills are changing.
At the moment, the government is partly funding the Warm Home Discount scheme through electricity and gas standing charges.
Standing charges are the fixed amount you have to pay just for being connected to the grid.
This varies depending on where you live and your supplier but for a dual energy household, the average is around £330 a year.
Of that, MoneySavingExpert says around £39 goes towards the Warm Home Discount scheme, which is a government programme that offers low-income households £150 off their electricity bill.
But from April, these costs will shift to energy unit rates – the amount you pay per kilowatt hour of energy used.
What does this mean for you?
This doesn’t mean you won’t pay the £39 – it will just be taken out of the amount you pay for your energy use instead.
The less energy people use, the more they will benefit from this reform to standing charges.
Warning to check energy firms pass on savings
From 1 April, the government’s £150 off energy bills scheme that was announced in the budget will also take effect.
This reduction is happening because the government has opted to remove various green levies from household bills.
Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said: “Budget decision to remove costs from bills and government moves to alter how the Warm Home Discount is paid for, will mean changes across standing charges and unit costs.
“Even those on fixed tariffs will need to look carefully to check that energy firms pass on the changes and potential savings to these customers.”
‘We are acting to make our energy system fairer’
Minister for energy consumers Martin McCluskey said: “This government is relentlessly focused on the cost of living, which is why we have acted to take an average of £150 of costs off energy bills from April.
“We are also acting to make our energy system fairer. We know that standing charges are a big concern for many households, especially those on low incomes.
“That is why we have taken the decision to bring down these fixed costs, creating a fairer system and delivering savings for households who use less energy.”