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Cut price energy deals drive switching savings to seven year high

  • The annual saving made by consumers switching energy tariff has soared to £337 – more than at any point since 2009, according to new data from Uswitch.com****

  • 10% of consumers who switched saved more than £567 in the last quarter of 2015 – up from £429 in 2014

  • The average cost of the market’s cheapest deal has fallen by a staggering 8% or £66 in just five months

  • The new figures come ahead of Competition and Markets Authority proposals on ways to encourage more customers to shop around for better deals.

The average annual saving made by consumers switching energy tariffs soared by over 40% to £337 last year – the highest in seven years – according to new data from Uswitch.com, the independent price comparison and switching service.

The growth in the average saving last year was fuelled by a rising number of new energy suppliers launching increasingly competitive deals. According to the new analysis, at least 10% of dual fuel customers who switched saved more than £567 in the last three months of 2015 – up from £429 during the same period in 2014.

This year, the price of the cheapest tariff continues to plummet, with suppliers, big and small, battling it out during a winter price war to win new customers. Suppliers launching market-leading deals so far this year include E.ON, Extra Energy, GB Energy, SSE and npower. The current cheapest dual fuel plan, from GB Energy at £765 a year, is a staggering 8% or £66 less than the best-priced tariff at the start of September 2015 and is the cheapest on the open market for five years.

With the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) due to publish provisional remedies from its energy investigation next month, today’s figures illustrate that competition is working well in a small part of the market. However, 70% of consumers remain on expensive big six standard tariffs, which are an average of £326 a year more expensive than the cheapest deal. Uswitch.com is renewing its call on the CMA to propose tough new measures to encourage more consumers to engage with the market to help them manage sky-high energy bills.

Tom Lyon, energy expert at Uswitch.com, says: “Energy suppliers big and small continue to battle to win customers by launching ever-increasingly competitive fixed rate tariffs. Unfortunately, only a minority of consumers are taking advantage of these deals, so vast numbers are unnecessarily paying well over the odds for their energy.

“The fact that such big savings are there for the taking shows the huge potential for making the market work for consumers. All eyes are now on the CMA to propose bold recommendations next month to boost low customer engagement, which is key to increasing competition, lowering bills and improving customer service.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Jason Wakeford

Phone: 0203 872 5612

Email: jason.wakeford@uswitch.com

Twitter: @UswitchPR

Notes to editors

  1. Average saving figures for Uswitch dual fuel customers May 2009 to December 2015

Six months toAverage dual fuel customer savingAt least 10% of customers who switched saved
May 2009£192£406
Nov 2009£254£462
May 2010£304£544
Nov 2010£247£470
May 2011£170£413
Nov 2011£152£371
May 2012£138£328
Nov 2012£156£315
May 2013£139£276
Nov 2013£175£350
May 2014£204£383
Nov 2014£228£412
(3 months to) Dec 2014£240£429
May 2015£292£512
(3 months to) Dec 2015£337£567

Source: Uswitch.com based on dual fuel customers switching with uSwitch between May 2009 and November 2015.

  1. Cheapest deal on the market on 1st September 2015 was GB Energy’s ‘Premium Energy Saver’ at £831. The cheapest deal on the market today (10th February 2015) is GB Energy’s ‘Fixed 12 Sapphire’ at £765 a year. This plan is the cheapest for five years, since Scottish Power’s ‘Online Energy Saver 13’ tariff which launched on 18th February 2011 at £782 (this excludes collective switch schemes).

  2. Average big six duel fuel standard variable plan (paying by monthly Direct Debit) as of 10th February 2015 is £1,091 minus cheapest deal (GB Energy’s ‘Fixed 12 Sapphire’ at £765) = £326 a year difference.

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