It’s the summer of strikes in the U.K. Following walkouts by rail workers, garbage collectors, bus drivers and junior barristers in recent months, the general public is now being encouraged by a grass roots campaign to protest soaring energy bills. Don’t Pay U.K has called for consumers to cancel their automatic bank transfers on energy bills from Oct. 1 to force gas and electric providers to reduce the maximum amount they can charge customers annually.
The date coincides with an expected increase in the tariff price cap by U.K. energy regulator OFGEM, that consulting firm Cornwall Insight estimates will jump to £3,582 ($4,208) from October and £4,266 ($5,012) in January 2023. Cornwall says average monthly energy bills would soar 181% in just one year with that hike. In April, bills climbed from £1,200 to the current cap of £1,971. The prospect of surging electricity prices prompted an eye-popping forecast from Citi analysts who say U.K inflation could reach as much as 19% next year. But even providers such as Octopus Energy have said neither customers nor retailers should be carrying the cost of Russia’s war in Ukraine, and have called for the government to double its support package. To date, over 112,000 people have pledged to cancel their bills, though Don’t Pay U.K. has said the strike will only take place if one million people sign up. Activists from the movement have told MarketWatch that they are confident more people will come on board, especially as OFGEM is expected to announce the official October cap on Friday.Making the government ‘see s …