Representatives from the Big Six were recently called before a panel of MPs, being asked to justify their recent round of price rises. British Gas, Npower, Scottish Power and Scottish & Southern have already announced price rises this winter. On the 29th October, bosses from all of the largest energy suppliers were questioned on why they have raised their prices … Read More
Ofgem drafts code of practice for TPIs
The energy regulator has posted a first draft document outlining what rules and regulations could go into its Third-party intermediary (TPI) code of practice. The code, if it ever comes into existence, will aim to keep brokers acting in a way that is “fair, honest, appropriate and transparent”, the document states. We reported on this some weeks ago, when Ofgem … Read More
All of the Big Six end auto-rollover contracts
None of the six major energy suppliers will continue to roll business customers into new contracts without their explicit consent. The “Big Six” all promised to stop the tactic, although they are essentially only pre-empting new rules being put in place by Ofgem, the energy regulator, as part of their ongoing Retail Market Review. We recently reported that three of … Read More
SSE to stop auto-rollover contracts
Scottish & Southern Energy have become the third major energy supplier to announce an end to automatic contract rollovers for businesses. They join British Gas and E.ON Energy UK, with half of the Big Six now stating their commitment to not automatically locking customers in at the end of their fixed term if they don’t terminate their contract within a … Read More
Labour slams Big Six profits
Figures released by the Labour party last week show that the largest energy suppliers have notched up £3.3 billion in profits since the Conservative-led Coalition came into power. The combined profits of E.ON, EDF Energy, ScottishPower, British Gas, Scottish & Southern and Npower have gone up 73% in the last three years, according to Shadow Energy And Climate Change Secretary … Read More
Two of Big Six to end rollover contracts
E.ON and British Gas are to stop rolling their business energy customers into new contracts automatically at the end of their agreed term. Most organisation have experienced it. You receive a letter near the end of your electricity or gas contract informing you that there is only a few weeks or months left of your fixed-price agreement. It isn’t urgent … Read More
Energy regulator considers TPI code of practice
The energy regulator, Ofgem, is considering new ways to monitor Third-Party Intermediaries (TPIs) in the business retail market. As part of its Retail Market Review, the energy regulator Ofgem is looking at ways to rid the business energy market of ‘rogue TPIs’. There is currently no mandatory form of regulation for energy brokers, consultants and switching websites that serve the … Read More
Tory MP wants competitive utility markets
A senior Conservative MP has this week launched a major policy intervention, suggesting radical changes to the utilities regulators. The document was released on Monday, suggesting that draconian utility regulators like Ofgem and Ofcom should have their responsibilities for the competitive sections of the market taken away. This should be replaced with a more reactive style of regulation, by the … Read More
Ofgem fines SSE £10.5 million for mis-selling
Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) have been found guilty of the most widespread case of mis-selling in the history of the UK utilities market. The energy giant was found guilty of cultivating an internal culture of lying and misleading customers over the phone and on the doorstep. Ofgem, the energy regulator has called it the most “prolonged and extensive” case … Read More
Ofgem plans to protect more businesses
The energy regulator will protect 160,000 more businesses from sneaky supplier tactics from this summer. Ofgem are to put extra measures in place to stop electricity and gas companies from treating small and medium size businesses unfairly. Measures include plans for simpler, fairer business tariffs, an enforceable code of conduct for energy suppliers, and more time being given to switch … Read More