Find the energy to shop around
BRITONS are being urged to fight back against rising household bills as utility suppliers, broadband and phone companies hit customers with hefty bill increases.
Broadband clients on standard contracts face huge price hikes of 62 per cent the moment their deals end, rising as high as 82 per cent.
Scottish-Power became the latest Big Six energy supplier to announce a rise, which will kick in just before the peak winter usage period.
Experts say you can save hundreds of pounds a year by shopping around for cheaper energy, broadband and landline deals, especially if you are at the end of a contract.
CONTRACT KILLERS
Broadband customers typically pay an extra £13 a month, or £156 a year, once their original deal comes to an end, usually after 12 to 18 months.
Customers on faster fibre services can end up paying £158 more a year than they did while in contract.
Nine out of 10 say they would shop around if they knew their contract was due to end, but companies are reluctant to pass on this information, according to price comparison service uSwitch.com.
It wants the providers to issue end-of-contract notifications, as motor insurance and utility companies are obliged to do, because customers fail to grasp that cheaper and faster services are available.
HIGH FIBRE
BT Broadband’s standard ADSL package costs £24.99 during the contract period, then leaps 82 per cent to £45.49, a hefty £20.50 more, while Sky Unlimited Broadband jumps from £18 to £30, a rise of £12.
TalkTalk Unlimited Faster Fibre costs £19.95 a month, but it leaps to £33.50 once out of contract, a rise of 68 per cent or £13.55 a month.
Sky Fibre Unlimited jumps 56 per cent from £25 to £38.99, an extra £13.99 a month, while Virgin Media VIVID 50 Fibre Broadband & Phone rises from £27 to £42 – £15 a month.
EARLY WARNING
Watchdog Ofcom is consulting on rules that would force broadband providers to alert customers if charges are about to increase.
Richard Neudegg, regulation head at uSwitch.com, said: “Customers expect similar notifications from other industries, so why should it be any different with broadband and mobile phone contracts?”
Neudegg urged Ofcom to ensure the information does not get buried in the small print or isn’t shown at all: “These ‘end of term’ warnings need to be clear and concise, and implemented in a timely fashion.”
Ed Kamm, chief commercial officer at First Utility Broadband, said its research shows that only 10 per cent of customers are notified before being charged significantly more when their contract ends: “Making it mandatory is an obvious way of ensuring all UK households avoid sneaky increases. The good news is Ofcom looks like it will change rules to bring broadband in line with the energy market.”
POWER PLAY
ScottishPower is raising its gas and electricity prices by 3.7 per cent for nearly a million or so customers on its standard variable tariff from October 8, blaming significant increases in wholesale energy costs.
This is its second price rise in four months and the 10th increase from a Big Six supplier so far this year.
GoCompare.com energy consumer advocate Georgie Frost said around a third of ScottishPower’s clients will see bills rise by £46 to £1,257 a year: “This is just a few months after a 5.6 per cent rise on June 1, which added £64 to the typical bill.”
ScottishPower said all affected customers could avoid the increase by moving to a fixed-price tariff, but Frost warned this is unlikely to be a good deal: “ScottishPower has no fixed dual-fuel tariffs in the top 50 cheapest currently available.”
When this increase comes into force, ScottishPower’s dual fuel SVT rate will be £1,211 for a medium user paying by direct debit. She added: “That’s £404 more expensive than the current cheapest contract, so customers can find better value by shopping around right now.”