Total Gas & Power scam

hansol_2

Just spoken to consumer direct for advice on gas tariff. Apparently if energy companies supply to businesses, however small the business is, then they can set the tariff to what ever they want, send you a letter, and if you don't respond within a short time then you can be tied into that tariff for a year and be prevented from changing to a cheaper supplier. So for those of you who are new business owners, beware!

ex-energywatch_adviser

This isn't really a scam because suppliers are using the lack of protection for business consumers under the current supply legislation and business consumers agreeing to contracts without reading and understanding the terms and conditions only compounds this problem.

Info regarding business contracts from:
http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/en/content/cms/Energy_Help___Advice/Your_energy_question/Your_energy_question.aspxRolling Or Evergreen Contracts
Most suppliers use rolling contracts. Under a rolling contract the consumer will continue to be supplied until they decide to cancel. However they can only cancel when the renewal is due and provide termination notice a specific amount of days prior to the contract end/renewal date. If notice is not provided as per the terms and conditions the contract will be rolled over often on increased prices. There is no requirement for a supplier to tell a business consumer when a price increase will be applied. Business consumers should refer to the terms and conditions of their contract to confirm what action they need to take if they decide to change supplier.
The renewal/notice period prior to the contract end date is the consumer's best opportunity to re-negotiate a further contract with the current supplier or provide termination notice and choose an alternative provider.
If the consumer tries to transfer prior to renewal the supplier will object unless they are willing to release for an early termination fee.

hansol_2

The problem wasn't the price increase it was the fact that having gone way past the 12 months verbal agreement of being tied in for a year I was unaware that the company could tie me in for a further year because I hadn't terminated the contract within their specified time.