Round 800,000 households throughout England, Wales and Scotland that obtain Feed-in Tariff funds from photo voltaic panels will earn much less over time after the Authorities confirmed a change to how the scheme is uprated.
From 1 April 2026, annual will increase will probably be linked to the Client Costs Index (CPI) moderately than the Retail Costs Index (RPI), which has traditionally been larger.
MoneySavingExpert founder Martin Lewis stated the change was “not excellent news” for photo voltaic households, including that “from 1 April it’ll get somewhat worse”, although he famous it might have been far worse.
What’s altering from April
From 1 April 2026, Feed-in Tariff funds will rise according to CPI inflation as a substitute of RPI.
Whereas funds will proceed to extend annually, the change means these will increase are prone to be smaller. Ofgem will publish the brand new CPI-linked tariff charges for the 2026/27 yr earlier than the modifications take impact.
Who will probably be affected
The modifications apply solely to present Feed-in Tariff prospects, because the scheme closed to new candidates in 2019 and was changed by the Good Export Assure.
Households already signed up usually obtain mounted funds for producing and exporting electrical energy beneath long-term contracts, usually lasting as much as 25 years.
As a result of CPI is mostly decrease than RPI, households will earn much less over the remaining lifetime of their agreements.
Are you one of many 800,000 households on the Feed-in Tariff paid to generate and export electrical energy? From 1 April it will get somewhat worse. Full data… https://t.co/tdt1kIx6RZJanuary 28, 2026
Why the Authorities made the change and what it means going ahead
The Authorities has argued that RPI can overstate inflation and that CPI is a extra extensively used and correct measure.
It has additionally stated the transfer will assist cut back the general price of the scheme, which is funded by means of levies on family electrical energy payments. Earlier proposals to freeze Feed-in Tariff charges for a number of years have been dropped following criticism, with Martin Lewis warning such a transfer would have been a “breach of promise”.
Whereas the Authorities has stepped again from freezing funds altogether, the shift to CPI means many Feed-in Tariff households will nonetheless see their returns eroded over time, marking a quiet however vital change for long-standing photo voltaic incentives.
