Martin Lewis has offered his advice to energy firm customers who are facing their direct debit doubling as the energy cap rises. The Money Saving Expert website founder answered questions from viewers live on air alongside Susanna Reid.
The pair shed light on the dire situation of increasing bills as the energy price cap is set to increase by 54% in April. Martin said the purpose of the show was to help those who are facing increased pressure in the cost of living crisis.
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After a concerned viewer called in about their direct debits for energy doubling, Martin issued advice on what people should do if this happens to them. It comes after the money-saving campaigner raised the issue at the House of Commons on Tuesday, March 22, which you can read more about here.
He told MPs: "There is no reason to double someone's direct debit when they're in credit and the price cap is going up 54%. That's not mathematically sound and that's a breach of licensing conditions." You can get more stories like this by subscribing to our newsletters .
Speaking live on GMB on Wednesday, March 30, Martin said: "If they're putting it up by doubling it, which is an increase of 100%, I would argue that's disproportionate. I gave evidence last week at the House of Commons on the fact I believe that some energy firms are deliberately inflating the amount they are putting on direct debit to help with their cash flow."
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He said people who have seen this hefty rise on their energy bills should act by calling up their supplier. He advised: "You need to go to them and say, 'Can you justify why you are putting it up so much?'. If their answer is that they're putting it up so much because 'we think it might go up again in October', that's not fair.
"You need to say, 'This is not what I want to pay, I want you to bring it down. I'm happy for it to go up by 50% but I'm not happy for it to go up by more'. And, if that doesn't work, make a formal complaint."
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