A MAJOR energy group has announced an average 4% reduction in standard gas bills from the end of the month.
But consumer groups said today the cut by Scottish & Southern Energy, which would see an average reduction of 62p a week, was “short-changing customers”.
The average gas bill would still be a third higher than prices two years ago, experts said.
Provider Scottish & Southern Energy, which serves nearly 10 million customers across gas and electricity, said the reduction would come into effect from March 29.
But Scottish & Southern Energy is increasing the “fixed” charge element of bills, which could see some low usage gas customers fail to fully benefit from the price cut.
Scottish & Southern Energy said pre-payment gas customers will benefit from an average reduction of 9% or £70, although typical pre-payment bills in Scotland will go down by 11%.
The announcement came after British Gas cut its standard gas bills by 10% last month.
A spokesman for uSwitch.com, a site which advises customers about switching gas and electricity suppliers, said: “It’s not a huge saving in the grand scheme of things.”
There have been calls for widespread energy cuts after bumper annual profits revealed by major energy firms in recent weeks.
Centrica said its residential British Gas arm notched up a 58% leap in profits last year, while Scottish Power’s earnings rose by 7.9%.
Scottish & Southern Energy said today its changes will see the fixed amount charged for the first 1,143kWh of gas used rise from £53 to £98, including VAT. Gas used beyond this level will be reduced by at least 11%, giving a net 4% reduction.