British Gas giving customers half-price electricity every week with 1 change | Personal Finance | Finance

British Gas is giving half-price electricity every week to customers who make one small change.

The energy supplier is running a rewards scheme that gives customers money off their bill for shifting their electricity usage to off-peak hours.

The PeakSave scheme rewards those who use energy when there is less demand, or more renewable electricity available on the grid, as part of a bid to encourage greener energy use.

British Gas has paid more than £14 million to over 650,000 customers taking part in the scheme so far, giving households big savings every week.

Customers can sign up for PeakSave no matter what tariff they are currently on and by joining you’ll get half-price electricity every Sunday, as well as during PeakSave Green Flex events.

Households will save money during the five hour PeakSave event which runs every week on a Sunday from 11am to 4pm, so you can use as much electricity as you need during these hours and it’ll be half-price.

You don’t need to opt into these as those who sign up to PeakSave will be automatically included every Sunday.

Green Flex events require opting in and British Gas will notify you when there is one coming up so you can choose whether to take part to save money. During these events you’ll get half-price electricity for one or two-hour bursts.

By using electricity during these off-peak hours you can earn credit towards your electricity bill or meter and make big savings throughout the year.

It’s free to sign up online and British Gas will email you within seven to 10 days confirming if you’re eligible to take part.

The opportunity to save money comes ahead of another energy bill increase this winter after Ofgem confirmed it is raising its price cap by 1.2% in January. It means the average household in England, Scotland and Wales will see bills go up from £1,717 to £1,738 per year.

Households should note that the price cap doesn’t limit your total bills as you must pay for the amount of energy you use – so if your usage is above the average, then you’ll pay more.