Energy switching

OneSelect, a small supplier with 36,000 domestic customers, has become the latest energy firm to stop trading. If you're affected, your supply will continue as normal and any outstanding credit balance you have is protected.

Small energy supplier Outfox the Market has announced it is to raise prices yet again – the second time it's announced a hike this month, and the fourth since June. 

The Government's target for energy companies to offer smart meters to everyone in England, Scotland and Wales by the end of 2020 won't be met, the public spending watchdog has warned – and the roll-out is likely to cost more than expected. An investigation by the National Audit Office (NAO) has found technical problems are hampering the roll-out, with around 70% of first generation SMETS 1 smart meters going 'dumb' after customers switch. Some 943,000 meters are now thought to have lost their smart functionality, and are unable to communicate with their owner's new energy supplier. The NAO also found that the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy's assumption that the roll-out would cost £11 billion – the equivalent of £374 per dual fuel household – "underestimates the true cost of rolling out smart meters". Costs have risen by at least £500 million since that estimate was made in 2016, the equivalent of an extra £17 per household. For full help on how smart meters work and the pros and cons, see our Smart Meters guide. Most smart meters go 'dumb' if households switch Smart gas and electricity meters give automatic meter readings which are sent straight to your supplier, theoretically ending estimated bills. There are two types of smart meters: First generation SMETS 1 meters have already been installed in over 12.5 million homes. However, they frequently stop working when customers switch supplier. Newer SMETS 2 meters don't have that problem – you can switch and be sure that your meter will remain smart. However, earlier this week it emerged that just 138,000 of these have been installed so far. The NAO found that the roll-out of SMETS 2 meters continues to face major challenges. Energy firms aren't currently able to install SMETS 2 meters in around a third of households in Great Britain, with the technology that links SMETS 2 meters to suppliers still not fully developed in some parts of the country.  The NAO said suppliers installed seven million more SMETS 1 meters than planned after the Government underestimated how long it would take to implement the infrastructure and technical standards for SMETS 2 meters.  The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy had planned to resolve the problem by connecting SMETS 1 meters to updated infrastructure, but this project has been delayed and the NAO said it is not certain if it will work as intended.

Spark Energy, a small supplier with 290,000 domestic customers, has become the latest energy firm to stop trading. If you're affected, your energy supply will continue as normal and any outstanding credit balance you have is protected.

New energy suppliers may have to pass financial and customer service tests in order to obtain a licence, the energy regulator has said.

There are now only five energy tariffs on the market that would cost you less than £1,000 per year with typical use, MoneySavingExpert.com can reveal.

The energy price cap announced today is "misnamed" and is NOT an indication of the maximum amount householders will pay, Martin Lewis has warned.  

Small supplier Eversmart Energy has launched the cheapest one-year fix on the market – but you'll need to pay the whole cost upfront. 

Energy supplier Ebico is ending its variable, zero-standing charge tariff, and moving all 46,000 customers on it to a higher priced deal – blaming Ofgem's incoming price cap for the move. 

There's a risk that a third of first generation smart meters may 'stay dumb' after a billpayer switches energy supplier, a Government report has revealed.