British Gas to streamline bills and offer ‘fairer deal’

ALL of Britain’s Big Six energy companies have pledged a better deal for consumers as British Gas unveiled plans to simplify energy tariffs and provide a more transparent billing system in a bid to regain the trust of its customers.

The owner of Scottish Gas will offer just two tariffs, variable and fixed, and provide customers with a complete breakdown of all the costs that make up their bills.

All five of the other major energy providers said they had either recently carried out similar reforms or acknowledged that they could improve things for their customers.

Managing director Phil Bentley admitted British Gas “had not made it easy for customers” in the past and a letter would be sent out to all customers explaining the new policy.

He said: “It’s clear that we need to make things better for our customers. To make sure we do that, I’m committed to having an honest conversation with [them]. We are very conscious of our social responsibility.”

He added that the company had offered cheap deals as loss leaders in order to attract customers but the company would no longer be doing this.

“It’s not right if we are charging honest customers more [to fund these deals],” he said.

Tom Lyon, energy expert at uSwitch.com, said: “Consumer confidence and trust in energy suppliers is at an all-time low, and British Gas’ move today may be the blueprint for starting to rebuild it.”

With more than 400 tariffs available in the energy sector, regulator Ofgem recently proposed that firms must offer a no-frills version featuring just the unit price for energy used and the standing charge.

The regulator hopes this will enable households to tell at a glance whether they can save money by switching supplier or moving to a new deal.

All other, more complex, tariffs must have a specified end date and fixed terms and conditions. Automatic rollover at the end of the contract will be banned.

Ian Marlee, Ofgem’s partner for markets, said: “We will be examining British Gas’s proposals to see how far they meet our objectives to simplify tariffs, but we see a real advantage for consumers in a consistent, enforceable approach to reform and Ofgem is determined to deliver this.”

E.ON, EDF and SSE all said they had introduced a simplified tariff scheme in recent months, while ScottishPower said it was reviewing its provision to “improve clarity and understanding of energy tariffs and bills”.

A spokeswoman for SSE, which slimmed down its pricing structure to four tariffs in October, said: “Reducing tariff complexity and helping customers understand that they actually have a few, very simple choices to make in order to find the best product for them is something the whole energy industry must get better at.”