Shop around for online energy deals or waste up to £344

Do you know if your energy supplier offers an online tariff? If not, now is the time to find out as uSwitch.com reveals that 12.5 million households in the UK could be paying over the odds for their energy simply because they are on suppliers’ standard tariffs rather than online energy plans.

According to the research, consumers could be paying up to £344 a year more for their energy than they would if they switched to the online tariff offered by their supplier, an unnecessary expense that uSwitch says could be costing consumers in Britain a collective £1.69 billion a year.

According to Ofgem, the energy watchdog, only around a fifth of householders take time to regularly seek out and moving to competitive deals and around two fifths have never switched energy supplier. Not surprising then, that despite some of the best deals being offered exclusively online, just 5% are on online energy plans.

Overall, the 40% of householders who pay quarterly by cash or cheque on a standard plan are among the worst hit, paying an average of £185 a year more than online direct debit customers. The gap of £344 between the most expensive standard plan and the cheapest online is equivalent to over a quarter of the average annual household energy bill, currently £1,245.

Will Marples, energy expert at uSwitch.com, says:

“This is not about lack of competition – this is about consumers failing to take advantage. Whether it‟s down to lack of understanding, poor communication or apathy, there is absolutely no reason for large numbers of consumers to be overpaying for their household energy. Online energy plans are where suppliers are offering their lowest prices – if households are not taking advantage then they will be losing out.”

“Consumers can help themselves by following three simple steps: move to dual fuel, pay by direct debit and sign up to an online plan. Don’t be put off by the fact that it is called an online plan – with some suppliers only requiring you to register online, this is a small obstacle that is very easy to overcome after which you can run your account as usual. There really is an online energy plan to suit everyone.”

TotallyMoney.com can help you compare prices on every energy supplier available in your area. Just visit http://www.totallymoney.com/utitlies/ and enter your details. When you have found the right deal for you, just click Apply and we’ll do the rest.