THE latest round of energy price hikes could have a damaging effect on thousands of people, it was claimed this week.

Households face an annual bill increase of £80 to £120 for gas and electricity after four of the ‘big six’ energy suppliers upped their prices.

Giants npower and British Gas joined Scottish Power and SSE this week as two more suppliers to introduce the price change ahead of the winter months.

British Gas customers can expect a rise of 6% for gas and electricity, while npower has announced an 8.8% hike for gas and 9.1% for electricity, adding £112 to typical household bills.

Chief executive at Homes in Sedgemoor Dawn Lang said residents face difficulties when prices of everyday living are bumped up.

She said: “We are fully aware of the hardship that our residents can face by such significant increases in the cost of their essential services.”

Homes in Sedgemoor run over 4,000 council houses and was set up by the district council in 2007 to manage its homes.

And Ms Lang said a chunk of the £13million received through the Decent Homes scheme will be used to help their tenants cut costs.

She added: “Through our investment programme we are working to improve insulation levels, install energy efficient heating systems, double glazing and promoting free incentive schemes.

“To complement this we continue to offer advice on energy efficiency and on setting the best price via Energy Switch and other routes.”

The move is a bitter blow for householders to had to deal with huge rises only last year.

Gillian Guy, chief executive at Citizens Advice, said: “Rises in fuel costs are eating away at people's earnings, forcing them to make really difficult choices about whether to have a warm home, put food on the table, or fill up the car in order to get to work."

Here are some small tips to keep yourself warm and your pockets full this winter:

  • Turning your thermostat down and reducing your room temperature by 1°C could save you up to £60 a year, according to the Energy Saving Trust.
  •  If you’re just in one room, reduce the temperature in other parts of your property and pile on the layers.
  • At night, close all curtains to stop heat escaping and draughts coming in.
  • Check tariffs of other suppliers. Look beyond the mainstream.