Ofgem raises energy price cap by 80% to £3,549 from October

Thousands of people and various unions and groups marched through central London in protest against the cost of living crisis in June. Photograph: Vuk Valcic/Zuma Press Wire/Rex/Shutterstock

Households in Great Britain face a leap in energy bills from October after the regulator raised the energy price cap, taking the average gas and electricity bill to £3,549 a year.

In a blow for hard-pressed consumers already struggling with soaring inflation, Ofgem approved the £1,578 increase on the current figure of £1,971 for the average dual-fuel tariff – a rise of 80%.