United kingdom Daily news: Energy price 'hotspots' where suppliers charge loyal customers more because they 'can get away with' it

Jumat, 22 Juni 2012

Energy price 'hotspots' where suppliers charge loyal customers more because they 'can get away with' it

Energy price 'hotspots' where suppliers charge loyal customers more because they 'can get away with' it

By Harry Glass

PUBLISHED: 09:56 EST, 21 June 2012 | UPDATED: 08:57 EST, 22 June 2012

Consumers in poorer parts of Britain are being hit with higher energy bills, a study has found.

Experts suggest that providers will charge what people will pay, so prices could be up to Â£92 higher per year where loyal customers stick with their suppliers no matter what the charge. Paradoxically, these tend to be areas where incomes are lower.

Merseyside and North Wales pay most, with a typical annual bill of Â£1,373, research by price comparison service energyhelpline.com found.

Postcode lottery: Extra strain on squeezed budgets could throw more people into fuel poverty

Energyhelpline director Mark Todd said: 'It is difficult to explain the reasoning behind these regional price variations other than the fact that regional suppliers charge what they think they can get away with.

'Often, loyal customers stick to the same regional suppliers rather than switching, meaning profit hotspots arise.

'By switching suppliers, customers are standing up for themselves and showing that they will not tolerate high prices.'

Unemployment in the North West is now second-highest in the UK, on 9.4 per cent of adults out of work, with unemployment in Wales at 9 per cent, according to ONS figures.

Joblessness may represent an impediment to switching energy supplier because the best deals are found on the internet, which is often accessed at work or may be cancelled when individuals have no income.

Hotspots: Red areas have the biggest variance in prices

'It's a cruel irony that the areas being landed with the highest bills are the ones where cash is most strapped and where people are struggling to find employment,' Todd added.

West Midlanders face the second-highest bills in the UK at Â£1,333 a year, followed by central and southern Scotland (Â£1,329), the rest of the North West (Â£1,316) and the South West (Â£1,316).

The cheapest regions in the UK are the East Midlands (Â£1,291), London, (Â£1,293) southern England (Â£1,294) and the South East (Â£1,294) - which, for example, is Â£79 less a year than those on Merseyside. The very cheapest area is north Scotland where households typically pay Â£1,281 a year.

Todd said: 'We expect to see energy price increases later this year, so it will be interesting to see what impact this will have on the postcode lottery across the UK. It is likely that the gulf between energy prices will continue to grow.

'This postcode lottery places extra strain on squeezed budgets and could throw more people into fuel poverty.

'Our latest quarterly price survey shows that there has been no let-up for those hit with the highest prices.'