Switch to save - £2.7 billion up for grabs by switching energy supplier

16 Feb 2015 12:24 AM

By shopping around and taking advantage of the best energy deals on the market, millions of people can save around £200 - and some can save even more.

13.5 million households across the UK are missing out on their share of £2.7 billion by sticking with their energy company.By shopping around and taking advantage of the best energy deals on the market, millions of people can save around £200 - and some can save even more.

The ‘Power to Switch’ campaign, launched yesterday, encourages people to switch supplier and save money by visiting www.BeAnEnergyShopper.com.With 26 energy companies on the market and some fixed deals £100 cheaper than they were a year ago, there’s never been a better time to find a great deal, switch and save.

Launching the campaign, Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey said yesterday:

When it comes to switching, the power is in people’s hands to get a better deal and save.

We’ve reformed the market so that there are more suppliers, more competition, and a much faster and simpler process to switch. That means millions of people can switch supplier and save hundreds of pounds today.

Energy and Climate Change Minister Amber Rudd said yesterday:

We’ve already taken £50 off bills and now we’re urging people to take advantage of the most competitive energy market we’ve ever had to save hundreds of pounds.

With Ofgem’s strengthened Confidence Code for price comparison sites, people will be able to have greater confidence than ever before that by switching, they’ll see real savings.

The Government’s programme of energy market reform includes:

• Halving switching times - it now takes only 17 days to switch energy supplier down from 5 weeks last year;
• Encouraging new suppliers on to the market – there are now 20 independent suppliers;
• Legislating to back Ofgem reforms that force energy companies to make energy bills clearer – and providing information for customers about how to switch.

Ofgem has recently strengthened its Confidence Code for price comparison websites, setting tighter standards on how tariffs are displayed with websites given until the end of March to comply.

Martin Lewis, Money Saving Expert, said yesterday:

We need to shout loud about the benefits of switching tariff. Too many people think energy firms are ‘all the same’. That’s far from true, there are huge differences on both price and customer service.

The worry is that news of recent price cuts, even though they were paltry, will have given many false confidence that they’re on a decent deal. Examine the figures and the ugly truth is very different.

Even after price cuts, someone on a Big 6 supplier standard tariff with typical use will pay £1,158 a year, whereas switch to the cheapest tariff and they’d pay just over £900 a year. So it’s worth people taking 10 minutes to see if they can save themselves £250 ― at an hourly rate of £1,500 if someone else was offering this to you as work, would you turn it down?

The ‘Power to Switch’ campaign will run for four weeks and will include national, regional and online advertising, encouraging people to switch and save.

Notes to editors:

• The £2.7 billon is based on analysis of 2014 energy bills collected from DECC’s Domestic Fuel Inquiry, which collects information on customer numbers by tariff. This data was compared with that from switching sites to find cheapest possible deal. For a full description of the analysis please visit gov.uk/switchingevidence. As a potential savings figure it is subject to market fluctuation and refers to dual fuel customers only. It is not a target for the four week ‘Power to Switch’ campaign.
• ‘Power to Switch’ runs in England, Scotland and Wales. Advertising begins on Thursday 19 February.
• For energy saving advice, customers should call the Energy Saving Advice Service on 0300 123 1234. If you’re based in Scotland, you can contact Home Energy Scotland on 0808 808 2282.
• 8 of the 11 price comparison websites accredited under Ofgem’s Confidence Code have already made the changes required under the strengthened Code.