The big story this week: Ofgem confirms a 13% price cap rise for summer 2026
Ofgem has published its updated energy price cap levels for the period 1 July to 30 September 2026. The headline figure is a 13% increase in the “typical” annualised cost under the cap for the main payment methods:
- Direct Debit: from £1,641 to £1,862
- Standard Credit: from £1,772 to £2,005
- Pay-As-You-Go (prepay): from £1,597 to £1,812
That’s a summer cap period, not a winter one—but it matters for heating because it impacts the running costs of hot water and any electrically-powered heating, and it changes how much “headroom” most households have to tackle the maintenance and improvements that make winter cheaper.
What actually happened (and what the price cap really is)
The price cap does not cap your total bill. It caps the unit rates (the price per kWh of gas/electricity) and the standing charge (the daily fixed amount) for customers on standard variable tariffs in England, Scotland and Wales.
The “typical bill” figures Ofgem publishes are based on assumed usage called Typical Domestic Consumption Values (TDCVs). Ofgem has also updated those TDCVs, which affects how the cap is presented and can change comparisons with previous periods.
The key driver Ofgem cites for this increase is higher wholesale costs. In plain English: suppliers have had to buy energy at higher prices, and that feeds into what they’re allowed to charge under the cap.
Why it matters for homeowners (even in summer)
People often associate energy cost shocks with cold snaps. But if a higher cap lands in July, it influences:
- Hot water costs (gas boilers still run daily for showers, baths and washing up).
- Electricity costs for homes with heat pumps, electric boilers, immersion heaters, underfloor heating controls, and general household loads.
- Summer servicing decisions: households delay boiler servicing, repairs or upgrades when bills look scary—then end up paying more (or losing heating) when winter arrives.
- Tariff choices: a change in the cap can make fixed tariffs look better—or worse—depending on what suppliers offer locally.
For households in Bordon and Whitehill, where there’s a real mix of newer developments and older housing stock, energy price movements can hit unevenly. A well-insulated modern home may barely notice; an older, draughty property or a rental with minimal controls can feel every penny. In Liphook, Alton, Farnham and Haslemere, we commonly see larger properties, annexes, home offices and higher hot water demand—so “typical” usage doesn’t always reflect reality.
What it means technically: how this cap rise shows up on your heating costs
Most homes in our area heat rooms and hot water using a gas combi, a system boiler with a hot water cylinder, or less commonly oil/LPG (not covered by the Ofgem cap for fuel price). The price cap affects gas and electricity, so its impact depends on what you run:
1) Gas boiler homes
If you have a gas boiler, the cap rise mainly changes the cost of:
- Hot water generation in summer (showers, baths, dishwasher cycles, handwashing).
- Cooking if you have a gas hob.
- Any “background” heating on chilly mornings/evenings.
Technically, the most important factor isn’t the boiler’s age alone—it’s whether the boiler is condensing properly. A condensing boiler is most efficient when the return water temperature is low enough for flue gases to condense and release additional heat into the system. That’s strongly influenced by your flow temperature setting and radiator balancing.
A lot of homes around Alton and Farnham are running flow temperatures at 70–80°C “because that’s what it’s always been”, which can reduce efficiency, particularly in milder weather. Lowering the flow temperature (within safe and comfortable limits) can cut gas use without any hardware changes—provided the radiators can still heat the home in winter.
2) Heat pump and all-electric homes
If you have an air source heat pump (more common now in newer builds and retrofit projects across Whitehill & Bordon), electricity price movements are crucial. Heat pumps are efficient because they move heat rather than create it, but their running costs are still sensitive to:
- Electric unit price
- Flow temperature (lower flow = higher efficiency)
- Emitter sizing (radiators/UFH sized to run cooler)
- Hot water temperature and schedules
In plain terms: if your heat pump is being forced to run too hot (because radiators are undersized or settings aren’t right), it will burn more electricity. A cap rise makes that inefficiency more expensive.
3) Homes using immersion heaters
We still find immersion heaters doing more work than homeowners realise—especially in properties with cylinders in Liphook and Haslemere. A common issue is a failed cylinder thermostat, an incorrectly set timer, or a backup immersion being left “on” after a boiler hiccup. With higher electricity costs, an immersion running unnecessarily can become a serious bill driver in a matter of weeks.
What it means financially: where the extra cost really comes from
Ofgem’s “typical bill” rise is an annualised figure, but you’ll feel it in your monthly payments and in the speed your credit balance changes.
From a homeowner point of view, there are three practical financial points to understand:
The cap affects unit rates and standing charges, not your behaviour
If your household uses more than the “typical” TDCV, your total cost rises faster. If you use less, you’ll pay less than the headline numbers. This is why the right technical fixes—controls, settings, balancing, and insulation—matter so much: they change consumption, not just the price you pay.
Payment method still matters
Ofgem’s published figures show different outcomes for Direct Debit, Standard Credit and Pay-As-You-Go. In real life, this translates to:
- Direct Debit often giving the lowest rates, but suppliers may increase monthly payments quickly after a cap rise.
- Prepay customers having less “buffer” because you pay as you go—there’s no spreading of higher costs across the year unless you choose to top up extra.
If you’re in a prepay situation in Bordon or Whitehill, the most valuable “energy strategy” is preventing waste—because it hits immediately.
Summer is the cheapest time to fix winter problems
When energy prices rise, many people put off servicing and system improvements. But breakdowns and emergency callouts are more common when systems run hard in winter. Dealing with issues in July and August is typically cheaper and less disruptive than doing it on a freezing January weekend.
What it means locally: typical housing patterns in our patch
Across Bordon and Whitehill, we see a split between modern estates with decent insulation and older properties where the heating system may have been modified multiple times. In those older systems, the biggest “hidden” costs are often:
- Overpowered boilers cycling on/off (inefficient)
- Poorly set controls (heating and hot water running longer than needed)
- Sludge and magnetite in radiators reducing heat output
In Liphook and Haslemere, larger homes and higher hot water demand are common. Here, the big costs often come from:
- Hot water cylinders set too hot or heated too often
- Long pipe runs with heat losses (especially if pipework isn’t insulated)
- Multiple bathrooms increasing peak demand and cylinder reheats
In Alton and Farnham, we frequently encounter older radiators, mixed upgrades (a new boiler on an old system), and thermostats located in unhelpful places (hallways that don’t reflect the living areas). A cap rise makes these “small” design issues more expensive because they cause chronic over-heating or longer boiler run times.
What homeowners should do next: practical actions that cut usage
You can’t control wholesale costs, but you can control how efficiently your heating system converts energy into comfort. Here are the actions that make the biggest difference in most local homes.
1) Check your boiler flow temperature (gas combi and system boilers)
If you have a condensing gas boiler, your efficiency depends heavily on flow temperature. As a starting point:
- Heating flow temperature: many homes can run comfortably at 55–65°C in mild weather (winter may need higher depending on radiators).
- Hot water temperature (system boilers with cylinders): keep the cylinder thermostat set sensibly (often around 60°C), with appropriate legionella control.
If lowering the flow temperature makes rooms slow to heat in winter, that’s not “proof” the setting was right before—it can indicate a control issue, balancing problem, or that radiators are undersized for low-temperature operation.
2) Make sure your controls are doing their job
We still see plenty of homes around Farnham and Alton with:
- A room thermostat in a cold hallway causing over-heating elsewhere
- Programmers set to long heating windows “just in case”
- TRVs all fully open, meaning no room-by-room control
Even without changing the boiler, tightening schedules and using thermostats/TRVs properly can reduce run hours significantly.
3) If you have a cylinder, check the immersion heater isn’t costing you a fortune
Look for these warning signs:
- The immersion switch is on permanently
- The cylinder is hot when it shouldn’t be
- Electricity use is high even when you’ve had no heating on
With a higher cap, an immersion heater running unnecessarily can quickly outweigh the cost of a proper repair to the boiler’s hot water controls or motorised valves.
4) Consider a system clean and magnetic filtration if radiators have cold spots
Cold at the bottom, warm at the top; radiators taking ages to heat; or recurring pump/valve issues often point to sludge and magnetite. A powerflush isn’t always the answer, but a proper system clean, inhibitor treatment, and a correctly fitted magnetic filter can protect your boiler and restore heat output—meaning you can run lower temperatures for the same comfort.
5) Get ahead of winter planning now (especially if you’re considering a heat pump)
If you’re thinking about a heat pump in Whitehill, Bordon or surrounding villages, the price cap rise is a reminder to plan based on real performance, not marketing. The keys to affordable heat pump running costs are:
- Low flow temperatures
- Correct radiator/UFH sizing
- Good controls and weather compensation
- Insulation and draught-proofing
A good survey should focus on heat loss, emitter output and hot water demand. Without that, any saving estimates are just guesswork.
One final point: don’t let “typical usage” fool you
Ofgem’s cap uses TDCVs to express a typical bill, but your home in Haslemere might be larger than “typical”, your household in Liphook might have higher hot water demand, or your property in Alton might have older fabric and more heat loss. The most cost-effective response isn’t panic-switching tariffs on a headline figure—it’s understanding your actual usage and improving the parts of your system that waste energy every single day.
If you’d like us to check your boiler settings, controls, hot water system, or advise on efficiency upgrades for your home in Bordon, Whitehill, Liphook, Alton, Farnham or Haslemere, book a visit with Embassy Gas: https://www.embassygas.com/book | helpdesk@embassygas.com | (01420) 558993