Energy deals keep site ticking

Moneysupermarket found comfort in its energy division in the last three months as fears Ofgem’s new price cap would make customers less likely to change energy supplier proved false.

The company said revenue from its home services division, which mainly includes energy, rose 21% compared to the same period last year, to £17.7 million.

Alongside volatility in its insurance segment, which represents nearly half of all sales, the energy boom helped lead to an overall revenue rise of 4% to £100.9m.

Meanwhile, its money division “underperformed due to continuing challenges in product availability”, the firm said.

Banks and other financial services have not offered significantly better deals via the site, meaning fewer people

“The group continued to grow in the quarter”

switch to a different product.

Revenue in the money segment dropped 5% to £20.6m, while insurance rose 3% to £49.9m.

Ofgem’s introduction in January of an upper limit on energy prices for customers on default tariffs sparked fears the number of customers changing to a better deal, a key part of Moneysupermarket’s revenues, would drop.

However, the latest available figures, from August, show switching is actually on the rise.

The price cap rose three months after being introduced, but fell again earlier in October.

“The group continued to grow in the quarter, with strong trading in energy showing there are still big savings to be made by customers, even though the price cap is lower,” chief executive Mark Lewis said.