24 October 2008
Citizens Advice and Ofgem have teamed up to launch a new campaign which aims to support those struggling to meet the cost of rising gas and electricity bills. Aimed at people on low incomes and living in fuel poverty, the Energy Best Deal campaign will provide advice to households to help them get the top gas and electricity tariffs. The move follows Ofgem's review into the energy markets, which concluded that thousands of families are missing out on the benefits of competition between suppliers. It found that those on prepayment meters and those paying by cash or cheque rather than direct debit are unable to access some of the cheapest tariffs available. According to Ofgem, the new campaign is designed to help these people secure lower-priced deals by switching suppliers or changing their payment methods, as well as offering guidance on how to reduce energy usage and become more energy efficient. Teresa Perchard, Director of Public Policy at Citizens Advice said: "Pilots of Energy Best Deal showed how much people could save simply by switching providers, tariffs or moving off a pre-payment meter, once they had access to clear information from a trusted source." According to figures from uSwitch.com, 5.4 million UK households are now living in fuel poverty, up from four million at the beginning of the year.