This is how British Gas rewards loyalty
GREEDY British Gas bosses were slammed yesterday after raising prices for the second time in five months.
The 3.8% hike, affecting 3.5 million customers, came just a week after the firm revealed a £430million profit for the first six months of this year.
The hikes will hit those on the standard variable tariff – already the energy giant’s most expensive deal.
Henry de Zoete, of Look After My Bills, branded the move “a disgrace and a slap in the face for families”.
And Citizens Advice chief Gillian Guy said: “A second significant price hike in a year will be a bitter pill to swallow for hard-pressed customers.”
Regulator Ofgem suggested British Gas was passing on rising costs to protect its profits and joined calls for customers to switch providers.
Alex Neill, from Which?, said: “They should take the power back into their own hands and radically change how much they pay, simply by choosing a better deal. Before
SOCIAL MEDIA @dailymirror the energy price cap comes into effect, customers still stuck on poor-value standard tariffs should look to switch now.” The price rise kicks in on October 1 and will add £44 to a household’s typical gas and electricity bill. It follows a 5.5% rise – or £60 a year – at the end of May. The two rises will rake in an extra £360million. British Gas was accused of timing the increase to take effect before the proposed cap on standard prices, due later this year. Nearly
or call 0207 293 2245 (Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm) 290,000 customers ditched the provider, part of Centrica, in the first half of this year. Centrica boss Iain Conn received £1.7million last year.
Centrica Consumer chief executive Mark Hodges, who got £1.2million last year, said it had “reluctantly” increased prices and it “reflects the sharp rise in wholesale energy costs”.
But Shadow Business Secretary Rebecca Long Bailey said: “The energy companies have gone way too far in ripping off their customers.”