Fears Over Record Gas Bills In Cold Weather

Households face the possibility of further rises in their energy bills, after the cold weather that has struck the country caused gas prices to rise to the highest level for 18 months.

The National Grid has reported a significant increase in the demand for power as many parts of Britain have been experiencing unprecedented low temperatures for this time of year.

Demand for gas yesterday was 25 per cent more than it was at this time last year and the third highest daily amount on record, as households and businesses turned up their thermostats.

The surge in demand caused concern in the wholesale markets, with the price of gas jumping 11 per cent to 62p per therm – the highest level in 18 months.
Electricity also surged ahead in price, climbing to £71.25 per megawatt-hour, up from £55 the day before – the highest level in two years and up two-thirds since the beginning of winter.

Experts gave warning that as a result households face the possibility of record energy bills, as they turn up their heating, plug in electric heaters and stay at home.

There were also fears that not only could consumers use more gas, but they could pay more through companies putting up their prices.

The so-called "spot" prices in gas and electricity – which jumped yesterday – are the price companies pay for immediate delivery.

Though companies buy the bulk of their supplies on the forward market, by buying contracts guaranteeing delivery in three or six months' time, they rely heavily on the spot market to cover short-falls caused by sharp jumps in demand.
Experts yesterday warned that a prolonged cold spell could have an impact on domestic power bills.

The current average annual household energy bill – including gas and electricity – is £1,228. This is slightly lower than the record it hit during January 2009 when they reached an all-time high of £1,293, but nearly double what they were five years ago.

The majority of experts fear that there are more energy price rises to come. This winter three of the big six energy suppliers have announced bill increases, with most kicking in yesterday at the start of the month and as the cold weather started to bite.

One supplier, EDF, has promised not to raise their prices until March 2011, but the remaining two, E. On and Npower are widely expected to increase their tariffs if not in the next few days, then certainly after Christmas.

Not only are the remaining three suppliers expected to increase their tariffs, but the fear is that those who have already moved could put up their prices once again. In 2008 all of the suppliers put up their prices on two separate occassions, within three months of the first rise.

The more immediate fear is that consumers will have to pay far more for their energy this month than at any other time, because they are using far more to keep warm.
According to Energyhelpline, a price comparison site, in the last three days the average household has consumed 47 per cent more energy than normal for this time of year.

In January 2010, when temperatures plummeted in a similar fashion to this week, Britain's reserves of gas fell substantially. National Grid had to impose gas rationing on some companies, such as car factories.

Most believe that the country is in a better position this winter, however market insiders expressed surprise yesterday that European companies started to buy gas that was held in British storage facilities, sending gas across the Channel through the pipeline known as the interconnector.

Last week Ofgem, the industry regulator, launched an investigation into the major gas and electricity suppliers, after it calculated that companies were making £90 per profit from each customer on an annual basis, a jump of 38 per cent over the last three months. It said it wanted to check if firms were "being straight" with its customers.

Some said that this investigation would make it very difficult for energy companies to put through price rises without incurring a political backlash.

Gas is used to heat about 80 per cent of homes and to generate about half of the country’s electricity.

Business customers should call 0800 458 6460

Domestic customers can save money by visiting this site http://www.getmecheapbills.com

British Gas Price Increases

British Gas customers will face a 7% rise in gas and electricity bills this winter, the company has announced.

The increase, which comes into effect on 10 December, was the result of rising wholesale prices, it said.

The rise affects eight million customers, but the company added that its 300,000 most vulnerable customers would initially not be charged more.

British Gas has become the second major UK energy supplier to announce price increases for the winter months.

It said that wholesale gas prices had risen by 25% since the spring.

"We know that rising energy prices come at a difficult time for many," said British Gas managing director Phil Bentley.

The company said prices for those on a typical dual-fuel deal would go up by £1.50 a week.

Vulnerable customers on the "Essentials" package with British Gas will have prices held until 1 April 2011.

Full details can be found at the BBC website. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11741766

It is likely that the other 'Big 6'and the smaller suppliers will take this opportunity to increase energy costs for their customers. Southern Electric (SSE) have already increased their gas prices, although EDF have announced that they do not intend to raise prices before the winter ends.

Phoenix Energy recommend that domestic customers sign up for a fixed price deal at our comparison site before the prices of the best fixed tariffs raise again.

http://www.getmecheapbills.com

First 'Big 6' Domestic Energy Rise in 2 Years

Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) is putting up its domestic gas tariffs by 9.4% at the start of December.

The company, one of the UK's biggest energy suppliers, said the rise would affect 3.6 million customers.

The company blamed the increasing wholesale cost of buying gas which it said had gone up by 25% since March this year. The company said it was sorry that the higher bills would come in during this winter.

"The last few months have been marked by rising wholesale gas prices and, having absorbed losses in our gas supply business for some time, we can not delay an increase in retail prices any longer," said Alistair Phillips-Davies, of SSE.

"I am sorry it will take effect during the winter period." Those affected include 380,000 customers in Scotland and 440,000 customers in Wales.

Price effect
The company said that people were being more careful with their energy consumption, so it calculated the price rise would be £4.64 a month for the typical customer, or £56 a year.
However, taking regulator Ofgem's standard consumption measure, the effect would be a £5.60 a month rise, or £67 a year.

This is the first time for two years that standard prices among the "big six" energy suppliers have risen, and follows some price falls during last year.

After 1 December, SSE customers with a dual-fuel tariff would still be paying bills that were £33 cheaper than when prices were at their peak in January 2009, said Ann Robinson, of Uswitch, but she said the timing was a concern for customers.

With winter about to kick in, this is a body blow for consumers. What nobody wants to see is a repeat of 2008, when suppliers last put prices up and bills rocketed by £381 or 42% as a result," she said.

There could be more bills rises to come.

Earlier this month, Ofgem said that gas and electricity bills would both have to rise by £3 a year, as £32bn was needed to improve the UK's distribution infrastructure. Ofgem said energy firms needed to spend that sum over the next 10 years to "keep the lights on" and meet the government's green energy targets.

Other suppliers

Customers of the other major energy providers will have to wait to see if the rest of the industry also puts up prices.

"While we hope that other companies do not follow suit, history has shown us they adopt a pack mentality on pricing," said Audrey Gallacher, of watchdog Consumer Focus.
The watchdog has argued that companies should have reduced prices when wholesale costs were lower. It claimed that SSE's gas prices had fallen by 2% since wholesale costs peaked in 2008, while the wholesale gas price had declined by more than 40%.

A spokesman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change said: "While, on behalf of consumers, we are disappointed in the decision taken by SSE to increase their gas prices, this is a decision for the company which must compete for customers in the marketplace.

"Consumers should therefore continue to assess regularly whether they are getting the best energy deal for them and to take steps to switch supplier and tariff if not."

(article courtesy of BBC)

Domestic customers should check their own energy and see if they are getting a good deal by checking http://www.getmecheapbills.com

Utility Supply and Metering Work

One of the areas in which Phoenix Energy specialise is the provision of utility supply to new build, refurbished and converted buildings.

We organise everything from the initial applications, organising quotations and payments, organising site visits and the scheduling of work to meet our clients requirements. Finally we organise meter appointments and register the meters to the appropriate company, indevidual or organisation. Phoenix Energy have organised over 800 metered supplies at dozens of site, predominately across the North East but also in Yorkshire, London and Manweb areas.

Working with the utility infrastructire providers can be very tiring and stressfull and we take away alot of hassles from architects, site managers, foremen, contractors and site owners - allowing them to do what they are good at (and are paid for!) building houses and making money.

I have used photos from 2 of our sites to illustrate what we do. The first site shows a small developement of 5 houses in Teeside - this job had stopped because of the recession but my client finished off the building of these houses - we organised all the utility and metering work.


Before. After

The second set of photos shows an onging development of barn conversions into 10 luxury houses in Co Durham. This site is ongoing and now the utilities are provided to the site, the plots will be indevidually sold and completed as self-builds, but with utility provision.

Site Distance from main road

One of the main problems, logistically and in terms of cost was the distance of the development from the utility networks, approx 500 m. All utilities supplies had to be placed in field to left of access road.

before work work ongoing

Street lighting New electricity transformer

Landlord supply for site 63mm gas main

The main road and the distance from the road can be seen in the above photo.

water supply added to trench before backfilling.

first house first house completed - (the gas and water service piping can be seen in the foreground)

The Phoenix Energy consultancy work on the above 2 projects assists the developers in the completion of their property developements. This compensates for the cost of the work many times over as any problems or delays with the utilites can have major effects on the construction timetables, leading to massive cost overruns.

We can be contact for this type of work on 0800 458 6460 or direct to John Lewins on 07974 387 218.

Green Energy - Somes Obscure and Interesting Facts

At Phoenix Energy we believe very strongly in ethical values and sustainable energy. We have a range of green products from major suppliers to meet the needs of our environmentally conscious customers. We supply renewable energy to business customers using energy from EDF and for our domestic customers our website http://www.getmecheapbills.com has renewaable energy from all of the leading suppliers and also an excellent deal from OVO energy.

There are some interesting and thought provoking links below. (taken from Greenpeace)


Wind could meet 12% of global power demand by 2020, and up to 22% by 2030.

Subsidies to fossil fuels worldwide outweigh renewable energy support by a ratio of 12:1.

On November 9th, 2009, Spain generated more than half its electricity demand with wind power.

A project is underway 2 deliver one sixth of Europe's electricity fm solar plants in the Sahara by 2050.

Price Waterhouse Cooper says Europe and North Africa could run on 100% renewable energy by 2050.

China built (roughly) one windmill an hour in 2009.

Wind overtook coal as the third-largest producer of power in Spain in 2009.

The annual market for renewable technology will rise fm appx US$100 billion today, to $600 bn+ by 2030.

Europe DECOMMISSIONED more coal, fuel oil and nuclear capacity than it installed in 2009.

Solar energy is now working at night on a commercial scale. A plant in Spain has seven hours of heat storage.

The global financial crisis didn't stifle the US wind power market: it grew by 39% in 2009.

China become the largest investor in clean energy in 2009, investing $16 billion more than the US.

Concentrated Solar Power plants focus the suns rays with mirrors at temperatures which melt steel.

The world's largest wind farm is in Texas.

Geothermal power provides 10% of New Zealand's electricity needs.

Iceland's power supply went from 75% imported coal to more than 80% local geothermal and hydro in 30 years.

In the space of just 5 years, Portugal's electric grid leapt from 15% to 45% renewables.

Concentrated Solar Power could employ 200,000 people by 2020, 2.1 million by 2050.

Four of Big 6 Energy Suppliers Face OFGEM Investigation

Four of the "big six" UK energy suppliers are to be investigated amid concerns of mis-selling to customers, the regulator has announced.

Npower, Scottish Power, Scottish and Southern Energy, and EDF Energy all face questions over face-to-face and telephone sales of energy contracts.
Ofgem said it had received information from a variety of sources suggesting they could have breached new rules.
The quartet said they would work with Ofgem on the investigation.

Research by the regulator in 2008 found that, of those who switched their energy supplier, more than half did so in response to contact with a salesman.
But it found that many who switched following doorstep sales ended up on a more expensive tariff because they were misled, or found it difficult to compare bills.
As a result, Ofgem brought in new regulations at the end of last year aimed at tightening up the sales process.

The new requirements included:
supplying a customer with an estimate before any face-to-face sales are concluded
giving, in most cases, a comparison between the new offer and the customer's current deal
actively preventing mis-selling to customers on the doorstep and over the telephone.

The four energy companies face an investigation into whether these new licence agreements have been breached.
"We expect all suppliers to comply with these tougher obligations, but if our investigations find otherwise, we will take strong action," said Andrew Wright, of Ofgem.
The regulator has the power to fine a company up to 10% of its turnover if a breach is discovered.

Previously, under the preceding mis-selling rules, Ofgem fined Npower £1.8m in 2008. London Electricity - now part of EDF Energy - was fined £2m in 2002.

Views expressed by the four energy companies suggest they will vigorously refute any claims of mis-selling.
David Mannering, the corporate economic regulation director at Npower, said: "We fully support Ofgem in making sure that customers clearly understand the products on offer to them and we are confident that the processes we have in place mean that we comply with our regulatory obligations."
Scottish Power has the highest proportion of complaints per 100,000 customers made to advice line Consumer Direct this year. However, not all of these complaints are necessarily justified, as they are just the view of the consumer.
Its spokesman said the company would answer questions raised by Ofgem.
Scottish Power insists on the highest standards possible for all of our sales agents, and invests heavily in training and development to maintain these standards," he said.
EDF Energy said that it believed it was fully compliant with the rules, and trained its staff fully, including refresher briefings. All new sales were verified by telephone to confirm the customer's intention to switch.
And SSE said it believed it was complying with the new rules.
"As a responsible company we take seriously all our customers' issues and would ask any prospective or existing customer to contact us if they are concerned, and we will work with them to resolve the situation," SSE said.
Christine McGourty, director of Energy UK, which represents the leading gas and electricity companies, said: "The companies involved will collaborate fully with the Ofgem investigation and are awaiting further details from the regulator.
"The new regulations that cover doorstep selling are part of the industry's EnergySure Code of Practice and members undergo a rigorous independent annual audit to ensure all the obligations are being met.
"Any sales agent in breach of the code will be struck off the approved energy sales register. Companies take their customers' concerns seriously and would urge customers to call them directly with any concerns they have."

Helpline
Meanwhile, Ofgem is urging any householders who believe they have been mis-sold energy on the doorstep or on the telephone to report the case to the Consumer Direct hotline by calling 08454 040506 and choosing option one.
However, the current system still encourages mis-selling, according to Audrey Gallacher, of watchdog Consumer Focus.
"Complaints have declined since new rules came into effect this year, but suppliers still seem to be flouting the rules," she said.
"Some customers are still being given misleading quotes and information, which leave them worse off when they switch provider.
"While many doorstep sales people will do a good job, the pay and rewards system continues to encourage mis-selling, despite years of regulation and voluntary initiatives.
"If better advice for customers and enforcement of the tougher rules doesn't end the flagrant abuse of this form of selling, the big question will be whether it should be completely banned."

Article courtesy of BBC

Phoenix Energy recommend getting independent advice or visiting our independent and inpartial pice comparison site.
http://www.getmecheapbills,com/

A New Round of Price Increases?

First Utility has increased energy prices for its existing customers by up to a quarter.

The start-up supplier has put up some of its prices by 23%, paving the way for the possibility of a new raft of increases from the “big six” energy companies.

Customers who are on First Utility's two variable online dual fuel tariffs - isave v1 and isave v2 - can expect increases to their energy bills.

Based on an average household, the isave v2 tariff has risen by 23.3% to £1136 a year from £921.
This deal is now £254 more expensive than the best online dual fuel deal, SaveOnline v2 from E.ON which stands at £882 a year, according to figures from moneysupermarket.com

Meanwhile, the isave v1 has also gone up from £965 a year on average to £1136 a year - an increase of 17.7%.

The news of price hikes is a stark contrast from earlier this year when First Utility named itself a price pioneer and the first energy firm in the UK to offer a dual fuel tariff costing less than £900.

Mark Daeche, chief executive officer of First Utility, said: "Last year Ofgem agreed to increase the charges that the gas and electricity distribution and transmission companies charge all Energy Suppliers. The increase in these charges came into effect on 1 April 2010.

“This is an industry-wide pricing change that all suppliers in the energy marketplace have to deal with.”
Daeche also blamed the rise in energy wholesale prices for the price hikes.
He added: “In addition wholesale energy prices have increased significantly since March 2010.
“We have been able to absorb these additional costs and delay increasing our prices until now, however it is has become apparent that these costs are likely to remain high for the foreseeable future.
“We will be reviewing this situation on a regular basis so that we can pass on price reductions directly to the consumer as soon as we can.“

At the end of July First Utility pulled two of its online deals - the smart online saver 4 and the isave V3.2 - and lauched its isave v 4 and smart online saver 5.

Is this the start of a new round of price increases from the 'big 6'? We recommend shopping around in order to obtain the best deals - particularly First Utility customers and customers coming off fixed price deals.

http://www.getmecheapbills.com lists all of the energy deals currently on offer. Check now to see how much you could save.

FREE Energy Monitors for Business customers

Phoenix Energy are independent energy brokers and consultants, working with all of the leading suppliers with the aim of reducing business energy bills. Our customers cover all sectors of business and commerce, from corner shops to industrial manufacturing sites.

To celebrate the launch of our new bi-monthly newsletter, Phoenix Energy are running a promotion to increase business environmental awareness and to reduce the energy usage of its customers.

For every new business energy customer, signing a contract through Phoenix Energy, we will give away a FREE Eco-Eye Elite energy monitor.

The Eco-Eye constantly monitors the amount of electricity coming into a business and clearly displays the energy usage in either Kilowatts or in cost and is a visual reminder to think about how much power a business is using. Using an energy monitor helps identify wastage and encourages businesses to make changes which will reduce carbon footprint, making a real difference to electricity bills as well as the environment. The average energy reduction of businesses using this type of monitor is 15%

Simple to install, and easy to use, Eco-eye makes you aware of your electricity usage and will have you saving your money from the first time you use it. With real time information up-dating every 4 seconds, you can identify which appliances are energy efficient and those which are not!

Eco-eye monitors retails for approximately £50 so we believe this is a tremendous offer, particularly since using Phoenix Energy to organise your energy contracts will also usually give an average cost saving of 10-25%
Details of our monitors can be found at

http://www.eco-eye.com/

We have previously offered this promotion to Business Clubs North East members and our customers have experienced significant savings in usage as well as savings on energy bills – a ‘win - win’ situation!

An End to Fuel Poverty?

With more and more customers falling into the fuel poverty* trap (latest estimates are around 4.8 million homes) Energylinx asks the question why government departments have not focused on resolving this at grass roots levels by encouraging customers to simply switch energy supplier to the least cost supplier.

Energylinx predicts that with careful management of those customer's transferring, ensuring that they do geniunely receive a 100% impartial comparison, that the likelihood is that fuel poverty could be eradicated in the UK almost overnight. The only negative issue is that if this was to happen energy suppliers would be forced to increase energy costs as they simply could not maintain their current competitive position with the sheer number of new customers joining them at the most competitive rates.

Energylinx predicts that if in an ideal world that all 4.8million fuel poor switch supplier to the least cost supplier for their household then energy prices across the board would need to increase by circa. 3% to allow suppliers to maintain current profit margins. The result is that the 4.8 million homes taken out of fuel poverty some 600,000 would ultimately fall back into that position.

At this level government initiatives could readily help reduce this further by the use of programmes such as http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Pensionsandretirementplanning/Benefits/BenefitsInRetirement/DG_185940.
With some simple changes to this very welcome programme a further 150,000 households could easily be helped out of the pain of fuel poverty. A further easy change would be stop paying the 63,740 pensioners who are resident full time outside the UK their Santa fund** ....................oops winter fuel payment! The winter fuel payment was introduced back in 1997 to help those over 60 manage their energy bills and cope with the winter temperatures. Last year those payments amounted to circa. £14million to those living outside the UK.

Phoenix Energy Support Armed Forces Day

Phoenix Energy are proud to announce our support for Britain's Armed Forces and for Armed Forces Day 26th June 2010.

http://www.armedforcesday.org.uk/

To show our support for our servicemen (and women) ansd veterans we have agreed a deal for qualifying armed forces personnel, reservists, veterans and emergency services

For all new energy customers signing up to same money through GET ME CHEAP BILLS .COM using the Forces Discount Website,

http://www.forcesdiscounts-mod.co.uk/

Phoenix Energy will donate £20 to The Royal British Legion.

"The discounts and benefits provided in the Defence Discount Directory and web site are aimed at the Defence Community in its widest sense. Regulars, Reserves, Veterans, Cadets, MOD Civil Servants and families together make up a group of over 10 million people."
Vice Admiral Peter Wilkinson, Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (Personnel)

Phoenix Energy hope to make a substantial donation to the Royal British Legion and look forward to supporting this excellent cause.

http://www.britishlegion.org.uk/

Ovo Energy to Pay Interest on Account Credits

New market entrant Ovo Energy is to pay interest to customers whose accounts are in credit. From July this year, the firm will offer 3 per cent to customers in the form of a credit.

Founder Stephen Fitzpatrick told Utility Week that the company now has 30,000 customers, with 12,000 switching in April and May this year alone. He said turnover is around £36 million and that the firm "is not operating a loss leader strategy".

Fitzpatrick added that the bulk of Ovo customers were on its 'new energy' tariff, of which green energy makes up 15 per cent.

The company also plans to start rolling out smart meters by the end of the year.


A very interesting development - we will be watching closely to see if any of the leading suppliers foolow suit and this becomes widespread amongst the industry

Npower - 'Footy Saver' Tariff

npower has today launched a new tariff called 'Football Saver'.

Football Saver provides customers with a gaurantee that their prices will be 7% lower than standard npower prices until at least 30th September 2011.

The tariff is only available to new customers who either take gas and electricity or electricity only (if they simply do not have mains gas).

There are no early termination fees associated with this tariff so customers can leave without penalty at all times.

£50 welcome bonus from Sainsbury's Energy

With immediate affect all customers signing up to Sainsbury's Energy Online S@ver Version 6 will be entitled to a £50 welcome bonus. The Welcome Bonus of £50 will be credited to the customer’s electricity account within 90 days of becoming a customer of Sainsbury’s Energy on the Online S@ver v6 tariff.

New offers on my ...website

Testimonials and Recommendations

At Phoenix Energy we pride ourselves on our professional services and attention to detail. We belief very strongly in that only by offering the highest standards of customer services, can we differentiate ourselves from our competitors. We strive to offer a personal service and to 'go the extra mile' to ensure that we exceed our customers expectations.

Below are some of the recommendations and testimonials given to Phoenix Energy by our customers.


“John is a dedicated, professional, wholly independent utilities broker with many years experience in the industry. He works tirelessly to ensure his clients have the right tariff for their needs, not his. I've seen direct evidence of the savings John has made to both private and corporate clients, which can run into thousands of pounds a year. John also provides a full bespoke service to building companies in sourcing direct supply of not only utilities but resolves the time-consuming supply of meters and connections. An excellent service, supported by a very deep knowledge of his industry. I have no hesitation whatsoever in recommending John Lewins of Phoenix Energy”

MK - Entrepreneur and networking professional


“I write this to recommend John & Phoenix Energy to you. John has an incredible passion for his business and a knowledge of the Energy Supply market that I doubt is second to none. His attention to detail is exemplary and will work tirelessly to resolve any problem you may have. Unlike many in this field, John is honest and upfront about any savings he thinks he an help you achieve - forget about using any other comparison website in my humble opinion there can be only one that you must visit and that is www.getmecheapbills.com, if you do only one thing today to help you increase your bottom line profits or reduce your energy bills at home then this is an absolute must. If you want to get an advantage over your competitors reducing your overheads is a must and phoenix Energy can help you achieve this, if you don't I am sure your competition WILL! Good luck for the future Phoenix Energy.”

JA - Company Director


“I can always rely on John for impartial and professional advice, as well as for getting the cheapest utility tariff deals”

SA - Company Director


"John has provided a service to my business in order to make substantial savings on my utility bills. John's personal service is excellent and his honesty is commendable. Where savings have not been achievable John has simply turned away the business in favour of the business remaining with its original supplier for value for money.
I would recooned any business or householder to have a discussion with John in order to take advantage of his services and to help reduce their utility bills"

LC - Business owner

"Dear John
I wanted to let you know how much I was able to save on my home utility bills by using your Phoenix Energy wbsite - getmecheapbills.com.
My domestic dual fuel bill for 2009 was £2130. My forthcoming bill for 2010 will be in the region of £1605 with the same usage.
I was staggered to find I could make a saving of £524 by simply swapping my supplier from Scottish Power to EDF Energy.
The contract incurs no fixed term, drawn out and complicated terms and conditions, and is with an established supplier on Online Saver Version 5 tariff.
On this basis, I will be personally recommending your website to my clients and anyone I hear complaining about expensive utility bills."

SC - Business owner

"I recently had the pleasure of transferring my electricity supplies from NPower and my gas supplies from British Gas.
I emailed John the meter readings and account numbers and he dealt with the switchthe same day. I have recieved confirmations that the account have been switched and it looks like I am set to save amost 25% on my annual bills.
I would not hestitate to recommend John Lewins and Phoenix Energy to any of my friends, colleagues and clients"

JP-F Solicitor


"Phoenix utilities saved us 25% on our electricity bill and have saved our clients many thousands of pounds on their bills, I would have no hesitation in recommending Phoenix Energy"

MJ Accountants


"Organising utility supplies at our developments can be very complicated and time consuming, Phoenix Energy take all these hassles away from us and allow us to concentrate on more constructive work... Building Houses!".

PD Builder


"As a landlord I regularly encountered problems changing tenant details with the utility companies, particularly when a previous tenant had already left the property. Phoenix Energy take all the hassle away! I use them for all my properties"

JB, Mortgage Broker and Private Landlord.

Free Energy Monitors for Business Energy Customers

To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Phoenix Energy director John Lewins’s involvement in the energy industry, Phoenix Energy are running a promotion to increase business environmental awareness and to reduce the energy usage of its customers.

For every new business energy customer, signing a contract through Phoenix Energy, we will give away a FREE Eco-Eye Elite energy monitor.



The Eco-Eye constantly monitors the amount of electricity coming into a business and clearly displays the energy usage in either Kilowatts or in cost and is a visual reminder to think about how much power a business is using. Using an energy monitor helps identify wastage and encourages businesses to make changes which will reduce carbon footprint, making a real difference to electricity bills as well as the environment. The average energy reduction of businesses using this type of monitor is 15%

Eco-eye monitors retails for approximately £50 so we believe this is a tremendous offer, particularly since using Phoenix Energy to organise your energy contracts will also usually give an average cost saving of 25%
Details of our monitors can be found at

http://www.eco-eye.com/

Customers who have taken advantage of our offer include

Cleveland Disabled Supplies of Middlesbrough - who supply specialist equipment for disabled markets and are keen to reduce their energy usage and to increase their environmental awareness. Phoenix Energy assisted them by reducing their electricity tariff from 14.7p to 8.7p upon renewal.

Cleveland Disabled Supplies are members of Tees Valley Business Club.

Director Arthur Ward

http://www.disabledsupplies.co.uk/


Another customer is BackBeat Music of Regency West Mall in Stockton. Backbeat are a supplier of musical instruments. Backbeat have recently relocated and Phoenix Energy specialise in providing energy advice for businesses taking on new premises.





http://www.backbeatmusic-stockton.co.uk/

Phoenix Energy will be running this promotion throughout February and March.

Recent Developments in Domestic Energy Markets

Thousands of EDF Energy customers face higher bills after the power giant overhauled some of its domestic products last week, despite Britain’s coldest winter for 30 years.

Some consumers could be almost £170 a year worse off unless they switch — £45 due to higher prices and £122 because they already pay more than new customers who take out EDF’s cheapest online tariff, Online Saver 5.

Eon and Scottish Power, in contrast, cut rates on some tariffs last week while First Utility launched a cheaper deal.

One EDF customer, writing on a consumer forum, said: “It’s interesting how [EDF] waited for the maximum use of gas to raise the price. The new tariff would increase our bill by 14% overall.”

About 165,000 dual-fuel direct debit customers on five of EDF’s online tariffs were moved to more expensive plans last Friday. Those on the Online Version 3 tariff already pay £122 more than on Online Saver 5. They will pay another £45 on the standard tariff, so are a total of £167 worse off.

EDF said: “We recently changed some online products to simplify our tariff structure. This will affect less than 3% of our customers. No customers are obliged to pay higher prices and could reduce their energy bills by switching. We have written to all the customers affected.”

This is an unusual move, given wholesale prices have been trending lower. It could signal tariffs will gradually start rising.

Ofgem, the energy watchdog, has told firms to cut prices this year and experts said they are finding clever ways to make up margins — just as the banks did.

Energy companies are becoming more like banks. They bring out new products that supersede the others and many customers remain blissfully unaware that there is a cheaper one out there.

We investigate four tricks of the trade.

HISTORIC TARIFFS

Energy firms regularly roll out cheaper tariffs to attract new custom — there were 13 launches or relaunches of energy deals in October, for example. However, in the same way as EDF, many also operate several so-called historic tariffs, which are no longer available to new customers.

For example, Npower has launched 14 versions of its online tariff since February 2006. Those on earlier tariffs are paying up to £1,136, compared with £907 on today’s version — Sign Online Version 17.

Energy prices have, in general, been falling but instead of cutting prices for all customers, firms launch lower tariffs only for new business. Firms generally fail to tell existing customers they could switch.

“The advice to consumers is not to rest on your laurels. You should check your online plan once a year and compare it with other offers to ensure you are getting the cheapest deal with that provider.”

EXIT FEES

Since 2008 energy firms have charged exit penalties for consumers who ditch their fixed-rate deals early. British Gas, for example, levies a £70 fee if you leave its dual-fuel fix before January 30, 2012. However, experts said the practice is rapidly spreading to other products.

For example, Npower’s Sign Online Version 17 is the cheapest online variable deal and includes a guarantee to be two percentage points cheaper than the firm’s standard variable prices until March 31, 2011. If you choose to leave before this date — or even to move between Npower tariffs — you will incur a £40 exit fee.

Scottish Power has a penalty of £50 on its guaranteed deals, while British Gas charges £60 for early exits from its variable Websaver 5.

“This is a relatively new phenomenon. They are, in part, a compensation for the price promise but only British Gas offers any meaningful guarantee of staying lower than standard rates.”

He would still recommend the Npower deal, even with the penalty, because it is the cheapest on the market — but be aware you will have to stick with the deal.

AUTOMATIC UPGRADES

Many suppliers upgrade customers on capped tariffs to a new capped deal automatically, which can be more expensive than a standard plan. For example, Scottish Power came under fire last September for moving customers on its then market-leading fixed-price deal, costing an average £1,037, to its more expensive capped deal at £1,156 unless consumers actively switched.

“Many providers don’t tell comparison sites about these new capped tariffs — they will simply write to the consumer to tell them it is the best deal for them. This makes it difficult for people to shop around. You should always be able to find your existing tariff on a price comparison site. If you can’t then you should move somewhere else."

MARGINS

In December Ofgem told suppliers to cut their bills as it emerged that profit margins were at their highest for five years. Dualfuel bills fell by only 6% in 2009 to £1,235 — despite a 50% drop in wholesale gas and electricity prices. Alistair Buchanan, Ofgem chief executive, said: “Consumers are not yet losers on the wholesale gap but will be by spring if things don’t change.”

Prospects for price cuts were slim, so grab a good deal while you can.

Our online comparison site - GET ME CHEAP BILLS.COM lists all of the above tariffs and all other tariffs available in England, Scotland and Wales.

http://www.getmecheapbills.com