With great power comes great responsibility – what can be done for customers and suppliers in these challenging times?

Given that the situation in the wholesale markets shows no signs of abating, both the government and Ofgem have a shared responsibility for helping to steward the energy sector through a period of profound challenges for suppliers as well as for their customers. Furthermore, the risk of structural damage to the UK economy as a whole due to record energy costs is evident, with the initial impacts already being seen in the latest inflation figures. With the prospect of a 50% increase in the Default Tariff Price Cap from 1 April next year, we set out our thoughts on some of the options open to them below:

Download chart here

Business supply and services Home supply and services
Dr Craig Lowrey

Dr Craig Lowrey

Related thinking

Home supply and services

Cornwall Insight comments on the announcement of the October price cap

If you are a consumer seeking support with their energy bills, please read our blog here: https://www.cornwall-insight.com/support-for-consumers-concerned-about-rising-energy-bills/ The rise in the Default Tariff Cap (price cap) was unfortunately inevitable, as UK bills continue to be the victim of an unstable and unpredictable global market. While there is still some time until...

Home supply and services

Highlights from our Energy Supplier Compliance webinar

As part of our Energy supplier compliance portal service, we run a webinar every 6 months which looks at key updates.    Our latest webinar looked back at the decisions made under Ofgem’s financial resilience plan. This included strengthening milestone assessments and introducing additional reporting requirements. It also decided on the short-term interventions...

Home supply and services

What is the price cap?

We release our price cap forecasts in the hope that we can encourage policy change.  We have created this infographic to help people understand the price cap and how we make our predictions. We would also like to clarify that we cannot influence Ofgem to change the amount of the price cap.  You...

Home supply and services

Cornwall Insight release final predictions for October’s Price Cap

If you are a consumer seeking support with their energy bills, please read our blog here: https://www.cornwall-insight.com/support-for-consumers-concerned-about-rising-energy-bills/ Cornwall Insight are releasing our final predictions for October’s Default Tariff Cap (Price Cap) prior to Ofgem’s announcement on Friday 26th August. Predictions show a typical household1 will be paying £3,554 equivalent per year...

Low carbon generation

Energy System Reform: Ofgem shares plans for Britain’s energy system

Against the backdrop of record high and volatile energy prices, Ofgem set out on 8 July its view on key aspects of the GB energy system where it considers significant reform is required to deliver a resilient, low cost, low carbon energy sector. Recent developments in the energy market, such...

Home supply and services

Price cap forecasts for January rise to over £4,200 as wholesale prices surge again and Ofgem revises cap methodology

If you are a consumer seeking support with their energy bills, please read our blog here: https://www.cornwall-insight.com/support-for-consumers-concerned-about-rising-energy-bills/ Our new forecasts for the January Default Tariff Cap have risen by over £650(1), meaning a typical household is now predicted to pay the equivalent of £4,266 a year for the three months to...

Regulation and policy

The changing compliance landscape

In recent months, Ofgem has been increasing its engagement with suppliers to ensure compliance with their supply licences and to deliver more resilient business models. This has been evidenced through a number of actions, such as stress testing suppliers and introducing additional reporting requirements, under the scope of the regulator’s...

Home supply and services

Price cap to remain significantly above £3,000 a year until at least 2024

Our latest forecasts for the Default Tariff Cap have shown a typical household’s energy bill will be well over £3,000 a year for the next 15 months, with the average bill over Summer 2023 (Apr-Sep) sitting at £3,649 – just over £300 per month. We have also updated the predictions...