Competition and Market Authority Report 2016

The Competition and Market Authority released their industry report last week. Despite the EU Referendum stealing the headlines, there is news that could be positive for the consumer. 

Government deals favouring suppliers are due to come to an end - currently energy providers are healthily rewarded for building power stations and generating energy. 

Often there is a set price for each unit of energy generated and this money goes towards the construction of infrastructure, usually an expensive implementation. 

However, these prices not only come from public money as a levy on bills but are also exceeding the current market rates. While it costs an additional £11 to every home owner's bill, annually it adds up to £310m. 

The CMA have put forward a recommendation that these deals should be awarded through auction, in turn saving the Government and consumers millions of pounds - in turn reducing their bills. 

You can start the savings early, and keep on top of them, by always ensuring your supply is coming from the provider with the cheapest rates. Energy Advice Line offer a free and unbiased comparison and switching service for both domestic and business consumers. To find out more and start the process visit energyadviceline.org.uk

Read the full report here.

CMA to post industry investigation

It's fair to say that publishing any kind of report on the day of the EU referendum means it will promptly be overlooked in favour of other news.

The Competitions and Market Authority will be releasing their industry findings later this week, however a lot has changed since it's launch two years ago. Massive price hikes from the Big Six have been taken on by the independent suppliers and the big suppliers are losing their hold over the market, but we're not safe from price hikes yet.

There will be four key pillars to the report on Thursday and speculation is well under way as to what the outcome will be.

Scale - CMA agrees that households are paying too much, and suppliers are still standing by their claims that the figures are 'nonsense'.

Price caps - one proposal is for customers with pre payment meters to receive a price cap, as these consumers are the most likely to be excluded from the best deals on the market.

Spam - a new database has been created from the details of customers who have not switched for three or more years, highlighting the importance and ease of switching. Needless to say, suppliers aren't keen on giving away their customer's data so suppliers can undercut them.

Tariff restrictions - this will enable suppliers to offer exclusive deals to new customers, while excluding existing customers from receiving the benefits.

Time will tell what is to become of the CMA report, in the meantime our advice remains the same - searching the market for the best deals will always be the way to ensure you're getting the best price on your energy spend. The service with energyadviceline.org.uk is always free and impartial, taking the hassle out of switching and saving.