Martin Lewis issues winter energy bill warning for 'poorer families'

Martin Lewis has issued an energy bill warning for 'poorer families' in the coming winter.

It comes after Ofgem announced it would bring down the energy price cap in July to £2,074 - a huge cut from its current cap of £3,280 per year. The lower cap will ultimately replace the government's Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) which places the maximum charge per unit of gas and electricity in line with an average annual bill of £2,500.

However, because government support, which saw households get a £400 discount on bills over a period of six months last winter, is being dropped, Mr Lewis warned that some families may actually be worse off - even with the lower price cap. He highlighted that some poorer families may experience 'outrageously high' energy bills in the coming winter.

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Appearing on BBC Radio 5 Live on Thursday (May 25), he said: "Energy bills, especially for many of the poorest families who tend to be lower users, are still going to be outrageously high this coming winter unless we have a monumental shift - a worldwide economic recession that brings wholesale rates down even more.

"The energy price guarantee was a subsidy from the state that was planned to last until next March but is no longer needed. That means the state is spending tens of billions less than it planned to on helping people with their energy bills.

He added: "If I were in charge, I would say that one of the biggest issues we have is we are helping people on benefits quite rightly with the £900 cost of living payment. We are helping pensioners, and we are helping some people with disabilities but with much smaller payments."

However, the money-saving expert highlights that one