UK households paying Virgin, BT and Sky Broadband WiFi have been warned not to turn off their internet routers at night amid soaring energy prices.

The amount that a household pays for each kilowatt hour of electricity it uses will rise to 34p from the already record 28p that families pay today.

Gas prices will go from 7p to 10p per kilowatt hour under the new guarantee.

It means that the typical household in the UK will spend around £2,500 on its energy bills – but those that use a lot of gas and electricity will naturally pay more.

The Government’s energy price cap to shield households and businesses from the worst of the impact of soaring oil and gas prices came into effect on Saturday.

Under the energy price guarantee – which limits the unit price paid for electricity and gas – means the annual bill for a typical household in England, Scotland and Wales will be held to around £2,500 for the next two years.

The Government has said that without action, energy bills had been expected to hit £3,500 from October rising as high as £6,500 next year.


Ways you can reduce your energy bills


As Brits look for ways to cut costs, they have been warned against switching off their router at night.

The UK's leading Internet Service Providers (ISPs), which includes Sky, BT and Virgin warned households to keep routers on 24/7 or risk missing out on important security updates.

Aman Bhatti, Director of Propositions for Sky Broadband, told the Express: “We know our routers are put through their paces during the day – whether on video calls, streaming the latest show, or online gaming. That’s why our routers run firmware updates during the night, to avoid any unnecessary disruption during the day.

"Switching off your router overnight can affect automatic software updates and optimisations which in turn can impact the overall performance, speed and stability of your Broadband. Other connected devices in the home that are connected to your router will also be disrupted by the delayed updates.

"All our current hubs are EU Eco Design Regulation approved, meaning no excessive energy consumption is being used."

BT issues a similar warning to customers, saying: "It’s important to make sure that you leave your Hub switched on and connected at all times. This will let us give you the fastest and most stable service, and ensure your hub is kept updated.”

The company added: "Constantly switching off the hub makes the line look unstable, meaning that your speed may be automatically reduced to improve the reliability of your broadband connection.”