The Energy Crisis: An Update from UniHomes

We’re sure you will have seen across the media that there’s been big changes to the cost of everyone’s bills recently.

Understanding why this is happening can be confusing if you don’t understand all the utility jargon which has been floating around, we hope this helps clear some of that up.

There are several factors which are causing the cost of gas and electricity to rise so rapidly, and we’ve tried to break this down for you below. Here’s some of our most frequently asked questions...

Students use our website to search and compare thousands of houses to find their next home, to make the most of their years at university. We also offer a service where we can manage your utilities ensuring that each tenant pays separately for their share. One monthly payment, makes the bill-paying process as seamless as possible.

We set up and deal with utility suppliers directly on your behalf, and then the cost of these bills are split evenly between you and your housemates. Something else which is worth mentioning, we don’t own any of the properties on our website. These are uploaded by trusted letting agents and landlords nationwide. In the same sense, we don’t generate or supply any of the utilities in your student house. For example, your energy supplier sets the costs for your gas and electricity.

‘Energy’ refers to your gas and electricity. The cost of this is set by your suppliers and UniHomes don’t profit from it. If the energy suppliers raise their prices, then these increases are passed directly onto the customer. 

Due to the unpredictability of the energy market right now, variable price cap tariffs are the cheapest available. Put simply, no energy suppliers are offering fixed costs lower than the price cap.

The price cap was introduced by the energy regulator Ofgem and sets out how much energy suppliers can charge consumers so that essentially, we don’t get ripped off. However, as the cost of energy is rapidly increasing for suppliers, Ofgem have had to allow suppliers to also raise their rates, or it wouldn’t be sustainable for them.

This is currently being reviewed by Ofgem every 3 months, whereas previously it was looked at only every 6 months. Should there be a change to the price cap, we’ll always communicate this to our customers with as much notice as possible.

The latest price cap increase was announced on 26th August 2022, when it was confirmed that there will be an 80% increase in the cost of energy from 1st October 2022.

We welcome the latest Government intervention that has seen the typical household energy bill only go up by 27% as opposed to the earlier predicted 80%, with prices remaining stable for the next two years.

The Government’s commitment to issuing the £400 Energy Bill Support Grant until March 2023, will help offset rising prices dramatically, reducing impact to customer bills.

We are currently in the process of issuing communications to our customers to notify them on how this will affect them and how they will receive the full benefit of the Government Energy Support Grant.

The recent energy crisis has brought to light the importance of Government consideration for students.

We are calling on the Government to do more in supporting students through the rising costs of living.

This includes an increase in maintenance loans, writing off maintenance and academic loans and long-term measures to further supports students.

This leads us to the main question on everyone’s minds ‘Why are our bills increasing?!’. There are many contributing factors, but put simply, the war in Ukraine is the main issue. Back in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine with the aim of taking over their government and gaining control. Countries all over the world, including the UK, are taking a stand against this, and have decided to place a number of sanctions on Russia to hinder their economy and ultimately punish them whilst they’re on the attack.

One of the sanctions put on Russia is to stop sourcing our energy from there. Now, as a high number of countries have decided to do the same, it has meant that we’re all looking for alternative sources, which in turn has driven up demand and ultimately, the price. You can read more about what is causing price increases in our ‘rising cost of living’ blog.

This situation isn’t unique to just students, as all households in the UK are in the same boat when it comes to these energy price increases. We do however recognise that students often fall into the bracket of the lowest income earners, therefore we’re calling on the Government to immediately provide students with more support. 

Households across the country will receive a £400 Government grant to help with the rising cost of energy bills. For UniHomes customers, this will automatically be split between housemates and will be either deducted or refunded from your monthly payments over 6 months, from Oct 2022 to March 2023. You don’t need to do anything to receive this as it will be provided automatically from your energy supplier.

We’re consistently tracking the energy price cap rates, and if over the coming months the energy suppliers are able to drop their prices, we’ll amend your monthly price, and your payments will come down too.