Martin's Money Tips
| Published: 6th January 2008 16:15 |
There are two ways to cut energy costs; use less and pay less for what you use. When you switch, only the price really changes
The pipes, circuits and wires, safety coverage and gas and electricity flowing through the house are all the same. Only customer service, billing and, most importantly, prices change; the new supplier performs the switch; all you do is take a meter reading.
Of course, there've been many switching ‘horror stories' and sadly these still happen, but for most it's a smooth process.The savings are big, often £100s a year. Considering it only takes a few minutes, the impact is vast.
If you've never switched before
This means you're using British/Scottish Gas for gas and your regional electricity company for electricity; in which case you can cut your bill by up to a massive 20% by switching. This is because, if you've not switched before, they know you're willing to pay high prices without considering it and thus profit from your inertia.
If you have switched before
Here, savings are smaller, as you've already had the big ‘first switch' gain, yet savings of around 10% are still possible. As who's the cheapest changes regularly, it's worth comparing annually or after a major bout of price changes to see if it's worth it.
While it sounds strange, you may save money even if your bills go up! In a period of regular price rises, switching often doesn't mean you actually pay less. If you're saving 10%, when all energy prices are increased by 20%; you'll still pay more than you were; yet paying less than if you hadn't switched
To find out more on this article and lots of other tips http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/you-switch-gas-electricity
