UK households are being urged to do one simple thing before the new energy price cap comes into effect on April 1.

From Friday, the new energy bill price cap will rise by 54 per cent.

It means energy prices will rise by £693 a year for millions of households after regulator Ofgem hiked the price cap on bills to £1,971.

The energy regulator is responsible for the energy price cap which limits how much providers can charge customers on their energy bills.

The increase follows a 12% rise in October and will take effect this week.

The energy price cap increase comes as households across the UK are facing increasing financial pressure amid the cost-of-living crisis with everyday goods such as food, clothes and petrol on the rise.

One thing every UK household should do before Ofgem energy price cap increase this week

Gareth Kloet, energy spokesperson at GoCompare has urged billpayers to do one thing by Thursday, March 31 to save money ahead of the rise in energy bills.

He said: “The cost-of-living crisis is hitting everyone.

“So if there’s a way to shave money off your bills this April, we would urge all bill payers to take both gas and electricity meter readings on March 31 and make sure you submit these to your supplier.”

He added: “It’s absolutely worth taking a meter reading before these increases come into effect. By doing this, it simply means your energy company cannot charge you at the higher rate for any units that have been used prior to April 1.”

Martin Lewis energy meter readings

Money Saving Expert founder and cash-saving guru Martin Lewis echoed Gareth's sentiments.

Taking to twitter he said: “Do you pay energy by monthly Direct Debit? 3 Urgent must-knows before 1 April…"

The consumer champion released a series of videos to keep people up to date amid the ongoing cost of living here which you can view on his YouTube channel.