Why aren’t we all switched on to energy switching?

Most of us are aware of the potential benefits of shopping around but the downside can be that savings may not last for long. An example is enticing interest rates for savings. Some take a pride in keeping a track on prices and have spreadsheets and diaries keeping track of everything. What most people would be happy with is reasonable prices that will remain so for a decent length of time.

I have switched energy supplier only twice, the first time mainly to buy electricity and gas from the same supplier and to manage my account online. That proved very easy, but I was disappointed that I was still routinely pestered by meter readers and their ‘sorry you were out’ cards despite providing meter readings promptly on request. The second time I switched, which was fairly recently, was not straightforward. Scottish Power made mistakes and caused confusion. I was pestered by e.on, the previous supplier, and eventually phoned to say that if they pestered me one more time they would be boycotted and I would not consider them next time I review where to buy energy from.

Please carry on with pushing for suppliers to offer a single unit price.

I waited a long time before I switched, when I did, it went really smoothly. I used Which? and MSE or Money Supermarket to switch. I compared prices on both sites, found a very good EDF Blue fixed price tarriff and by using the non Which? site to switch, I got a £30 cash refund for using their site. Despite it being easy to switch to another provider, I would not wish to do it every year, so will be looking for fixed price up to two year contract in the future. It was only after I received the first bill following my meter reading, that I relaxed.

Why have I switched ISP, phone, insurances, Bank etc. but waited until early this year before changing energy suppliers for the first time. There is no logic in why I waited so long.

I don’t think that Which are going to win their battle for a single unit price, nor do I happen to think it is realistic in simplifying what will always remain a market with choices. So would not Which’s best move be to accept this and to work on the best ways to make use of the latest proposals in helping consumers to get their cheapest annual deal? I simply want to pay the least possible for my energy.
I would also like to see a balanced argument set out for the different tariffs proposed – nowhere, for example, have I seen an explanation of why Ofgem include standing charge tariffs in the options (which also include no standing charge options). The issue is not black and white, so perhaps all the facts would be useful in future? We may still disagree with the principles, but at least understand the thinking behind them and be able to comment on them.
They are also a little sensationalist in looking at numbers – consumers may overpay by £55 million pounds, but let’s not overhype the issue – over 3.4m customers that is 30p a week (perhaps that’s underhyping). It still should be pursued, but don’t overcook it.
I’ll sit back now – just adding a bit of fuel to the fire.

According to the Which article above:
* Most people worry about energy price
* Most people don’t seek lower energy prices
Either something is wrong with customers, or something is wrong with the market.

Customers:
We can change customers through awareness campaigns – everybody here should persuade & help family and friends to look for lower prices.

Market:
We can change the market by holding suppliers accountable for the rate of switching. More radically, we could make buying domestic energy more like buying petrol. Petrol is prepay and you can buy it from any supplier at any time. Nobody would dream of a 12 month lock-in for petrol. Prepay domestic energy locks you in to a single supplier.

In my opinion, I think that energy suppliers need to say what will happen during the switching process in simple terms or people won’t do it.

Say for example that you’re account is not in credit becuase you pay on a monthly DD a fixed price. It’s not clear whether that debt will be inherited by your new supplier or not.

People assume it isn’t, or they assume that the DD will occur on a different day or something like that, and they can’t afford to cover that, so they stay put.

The same assumptions are made about switching bank accounts and overdraft inheritence.

I’m comfortable that I’m of a good deal generally,as I fixed it before the last price hike.

I think I could call myself a “serial switcher”. I have tried 5 of the big 6 cartel which over time seem to be much of a muchness with little if any real difference in price, and all exhibit intermittently poor customer service.
Once you’ve got onto the monthly direct debit payment method and unravelled the multiple tariff, variable standing charge marketing rip off you’ve got things as good as they are going to get. Whoever you buy from prices are still exorbitantly high and ever increasing at well above the normal inflation rate.

I’m surprised so many still believe this privately owned free market approach offers any real competition, and also believe that switching from supplier to supplier is some universal panacea to low prices. In my experience over several years it’s not.

This constant bombardment of advice we get to “switch and save” is tinkering around the edges of a very broken supply system. Even “Which” go on about switching every ten minutes, and should know better. Once you’ve moved off the standard tariff things don’t get much better whoever you go with.

To my mind the answer to control of a part of national infrastructure is to re-nationalise with the brief of the top man to meet targeted price reductions on an ongoing basis. I’d happily pay him big bonuses for real success.
As a backup I’d also form an independent overseeing body to see that targets are achieved with the powers to replace top management if they fail.

Better than a shareholder owned approach where the only objective is to make ever increasing profit through confusion tactics thought up by clever marketing departments.
That’s what we have now.
That’s the minefield we have to navigate through just to stay warm in the Winter at anything like affordable prices.

We need a major game change.
We need to attack the disease rather than trying (and failing) to treat the symptoms with the magic pill of switching, which it’s not.

It’s ridiculous how many people haven’t switched. Most comparison sites just require your annual usage, which you can get from your energy supplier with one phone call.

I went from Scottish Power to British gas. It took five mins and the only thing I had to do after I’d been online was to let British Gas in to do a new reading.

Now my electricity is cheaper and I got a couple of nice extras for doing so too!

It was just so easy. I don’t understand why more people don’t do it.

It’s even easier than shopping around for a new payg mobile phone because there are so many good energy comparison sites out there to use.

I think everyone should be a serial switcher and switch at least once a year of they have to.

It’s true that companies save their best tariffs for new customers and there must be loads of people out there who have been on the same dead tariff for years.

So the best way to stay ahead of the game is to switch as often as possible, preferable to a tariff with no exit fees.

I switched my electricity from Scottish Power to British Gas (using yoursuresave.com, one of the smaller sites) and noticed a big difference just on my electricity alone and although you do hear some horror stories it all went smoothly.

I must admit, it’s a bit of a puzzle why more people aren’t switching, I know about 3 or 4 or my friends who have done but not many altogether.

This information from Ofgem regarding revised energy consumption for low, medium and high consumers may be of interest:
https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/sites/default/files/docs/decisions/tdcv_decision_letter_final_2.pdf