Yahoo Finance Martin Lewis reveals his top tip for recouping cost of surging energy bills
Consumers should pore over their outgoings item by item as they look to trim their spending and ease the pain of the cost-of-living crisis, Martin Lewis has said.
The Money Saving Expert founder said customers had little chance of making major savings on energy bills with prices soar further this year from an already record high.
But he said other areas such as broadband, mobile and water could offer potential discounts to allow people to recoup losses.
Customers face their annual energy bill increasing to £2,800 in October when Ofgem lifts its price cap for the second time this year.
On a one-hour cost-of-living special of the Martin Lewis Money Show Live on ITV on Tuesday night, the personal finance guru admitted things were likely to get even worse before they get better.
But Lewis told viewers: “Let me tell you what I would do. Don’t look at the big picture. The big picture right now is overwhelming and we can’t deal with it. Instead, you need to look item by item at what you spend money on.
“There’s not much we can do in the energy market, but there is in broadband, and mobiles, and water bills … and they may save you enough to recoup what you’re spending on energy.
“It’s about going through the detail and the minutiae and spending time and working out, first of all, where you can just cut your costs, and then if you need to where you can cut back too.”
The programme aired hours after Ofgem boss Jonathan Brearley said the energy regulator expects to increase its price cap by a further £830 this autumn, just months after hiking it by £693 in April.
He told MPs “higher and more volatile” gas prices were behind the rise.
