No reward for loyal utility customers
Published On 13 June 2007
Loyal customers who have stayed with the same utility supplier for a long period of time are not being offered the deals that new customers receive, a report suggests.Consumer website uSwitch found that utility suppliers often make it hard for customers to take advantage of the low prices advertised.
For example, the lowest tariffs are sometimes only available online and the suppliers are slow to update existing customers' tariffs when a new cheaper one becomes available.
These tactics mean that utility suppliers are, according to uSwitch, collecting almost £1.5 billion a year more than they would if everyone was on the advertised rate.
In fact, uSwitch found that just 13 per cent of utility suppliers' customers were on the cheapest tariff available to them.
"Suppliers are playing a very canny game. By deliberately offering their cheapest prices on those tariffs with low take-up they can look competitive, attract new customers but keep their existing customers merrily paying over the odds," explained Geoff Slaughter, the energy expert at uSwitch.com.
"While it seems unfair, they will only get away with it if consumers continue to allow them to do so.
"Consumers have to understand that there is no reward for customer loyalty. Good energy deals do not come to those who wait, they come to those who take – and people really do have to take action for themselves by choosing the deal that suits them best."
