The Iran Deal - What Does It Actually Mean for Your Wallet

[Rhys]

Oil fell below 80 dollars a barrel on Monday morning after the US-Iran deal was announced, down more than five percent in early trading. Brent futures fell toward 83 dollars. If these prices hold and feed through into petrol and energy costs, UK consumers could see meaningful reductions in fuel prices within weeks. The conflict had driven prices around 50 percent above pre-war levels and UK pump prices were running well above pre-war averages.

The practical question for people's finances is: how quickly does a fall in oil prices feed through to pump prices and energy bills? The answer is that pump prices tend to follow oil prices reasonably quickly, usually within a week or two. Energy bills are more complicated because most household contracts are fixed for periods and wholesale prices feed through with a lag. The oil price also needs to stay down rather than recovering once the initial deal excitement passes.

How has the energy price situation affected your finances and spending over the past few months, and what do you need to see to believe the relief is real?

[Lazy Sentinel]

My energy bill has been genuinely painful since March. If pump prices come down meaningfully in the next two weeks that is the most tangible thing I have felt from any geopolitical event in years