Every year it's the same BS

moneytroll

I am fed up that:

1. Every year (or every time the contract ends) utility (and insurance) companies just increase prices without properly informing customers and hope nobody will notice.

2. The new prices are usually significantly higher for existing customers than new customers. The couldn't give a crap about loyalty. It seems to be all about turnover.

3. It is very difficult to get to speak to customer services; there are huge barriers (you are constantly directed to some FAQ; phone numbers are not displayed or sometimes not available). Messaging chat apps are rubbish and often don't work. Get cut off. The basically count on the fact that ppl give up or dont have time to spend a whole morning trying to get to speak to someone.

Basically this is a huge waste of time. Is it possible to do something about it? Or lobby?

I think they should introduce new restrictions/regulations because it is a huge waste of time and money for everyone. Is anything happening on that front? 

Chrysalis

Ironically I have (after much effort required to do so) contacted Ofcom about the issues when contacting customer services now, their extreme efforts to get you off the queue, the fact most companies it now takes over 2 minutes to even get in the call queue and that they have a message around the clock they have unusual high call volumes.  That I agree is a problem.

The rest is market conditions.  They are by law required to inform you of price increases, so make sure all your contact information is how it should be for you to get informed.

EssexHebridean

On the insurance side of things (although I know OT for this board) providers now have a legal obligation to inform you of the price you paid the previous year alongside the renewal price - so if you're not seeing that from a particular provider OP, I would suggest first raising their failing with their own customer service team, and then escalating that the the relevant Ombudsman service. Certainly all my insurance renewals since that rule has been in place have shown both prices. 

moneytroll

EssexHebridean said:

On the insurance side of things (although I know OT for this board) providers now have a legal obligation to inform you of the price you paid the previous year alongside the renewal price - so if you're not seeing that from a particular provider OP, I would suggest first raising their failing with their own customer service team, and then escalating that the the relevant Ombudsman service. Certainly all my insurance renewals since that rule has been in place have shown both prices. 

That's good to hear.

moneytroll

Chrysalis said:

Ironically I have (after much effort required to do so) contacted Ofcom about the issues when contacting customer services now, their extreme efforts to get you off the queue, the fact most companies it now takes over 2 minutes to even get in the call queue and that they have a message around the clock they have unusual high call volumes.  That I agree is a problem.

The rest is market conditions.  They are by law required to inform you of price increases, so make sure all your contact information is how it should be for you to get informed.

I don't seem to get notifications when the contracts expire. It could be spam filter. I think the problem might be that a company would send so many emails per day with special offers that customer gets fed up, places it with spam and then doesn't get important emails later. 

There has not been a time when the phone message hasn't said that the waiting times are extraordinarily large, even when I call at 8:01am. I don't think it's ok.

Anomnomnomaly

moneytroll said:

I am fed up that:

1. Every year (or every time the contract ends) utility (and insurance) companies just increase prices without properly informing customers and hope nobody will notice.

2. The new prices are usually significantly higher for existing customers than new customers. The couldn't give a crap about loyalty. It seems to be all about turnover.

3. It is very difficult to get to speak to customer services; there are huge barriers (you are constantly directed to some FAQ; phone numbers are not displayed or sometimes not available). Messaging chat apps are rubbish and often don't work. Get cut off. The basically count on the fact that ppl give up or dont have time to spend a whole morning trying to get to speak to someone.

Basically this is a huge waste of time. Is it possible to do something about it? Or lobby?

I think they should introduce new restrictions/regulations because it is a huge waste of time and money for everyone. Is anything happening on that front? 

For the last 15yrs... I've been doing this with my car insurance. I use a broker as I used to own specialist, moddfied cars (not the tacky fast and furious type I hasten to add)

When it came to the renewal... and I saw the increase.  I started looking around for insurance companies... who (and this is important) do not share or use any kind of price comparison sites.

I make up a few quotes in the price range close to the previous years quote, going a little under for some and over for others and throwing in a couple of outliers that are much higher.

Every year I call them up... and we do the dance of 'let's see what we can do to bring it down'

Every year I get my new insurance with £10-20 of the last one.

The only time there's been a significant change in price, is when I've changed my car.

This year for example... renewal was an increase of 50%

I also moved to a much nicer area in a very small town surrounded by rural villages with off road parking for up to 4 cars.

Called them up... ended up getting a quote £40 cheaper than the previous years... in fact I added some extras to my policy so that I can now drive any other vehicle fully comp, some key cover for car/house and so forth.

Policy was £3 cheaper than last years.

Always challenge the increase, always go in prepared with alternative prices... by doing that they've kept me a customer for some 18yrs now... that's also 18yrs+ of no claims discount as the last (and only) time I lost my NCD was in 97 when I had my first accident (the only one that was my fault, 2 more since were other parties fault... like the muppet in a BMW who tried to overtake on the inside of a roundabout and turn left and the drunk/drugged uninsured driver who smashed up 3 cars driving down my folks road one night and left his now 3 wheel audi in the middle of the road and did a runner)

[Deleted User]

I must be in a parallel universe. What has the above got to do with energy?

Grizzlebeard

moneytroll said:

Chrysalis said:

...

I don't seem to get notifications when the contracts expire. It could be spam filter. I think the problem might be that a company would send so many emails per day with special offers that customer gets fed up, places it with spam and then doesn't get important emails later.

You're obviously signed up to recieve communications by email.

Yes, change your spam filter rules, usually just put the company's email in your address book, but this can be a bit awkward to suss since most use different outgoing boxes with obscure names for different purposes.

Next tell them you wish to opt out of marketing communications. They have to give you this option by law.

QrizB

moneytroll said:

I am fed up that:
1. Every year (or every time the contract ends) utility (and insurance) companies just increase prices without properly informing customers and hope nobody will notice.

My experience is quite different.

Utility companies tell you your current tariff on every bill, and also whether switching to a different tariff would save money.

Insurance companies write to me a month before my renewal date telling me their new price for the coming year.

moneytroll said:

2. The new prices are usually significantly higher for existing customers than new customers. The couldn't give a crap about loyalty. It seems to be all about turnover.

For energy, this is against Ofgem's rules. Energy suppliers have to offer existing customers all the same tariffs that they offer to new customers.

In recent years, existing customers have even been offered "loyalty tariffs" that are cheaper than those offered to new customers.

moneytroll

[Deleted User] said:

I must be in a parallel universe. What has the above got to do with energy?

Sorry I didn’t know which section to post it. It’s to do with utility bills/companies and insurance in general.

moneytroll

Anomnomnomaly said:

moneytroll said:

I am fed up that:

1. Every year (or every time the contract ends) utility (and insurance) companies just increase prices without properly informing customers and hope nobody will notice.

2. The new prices are usually significantly higher for existing customers than new customers. The couldn't give a crap about loyalty. It seems to be all about turnover.

3. It is very difficult to get to speak to customer services; there are huge barriers (you are constantly directed to some FAQ; phone numbers are not displayed or sometimes not available). Messaging chat apps are rubbish and often don't work. Get cut off. The basically count on the fact that ppl give up or dont have time to spend a whole morning trying to get to speak to someone.

Basically this is a huge waste of time. Is it possible to do something about it? Or lobby?

I think they should introduce new restrictions/regulations because it is a huge waste of time and money for everyone. Is anything happening on that front? 

For the last 15yrs... I've been doing this with my car insurance. I use a broker as I used to own specialist, moddfied cars (not the tacky fast and furious type I hasten to add)

When it came to the renewal... and I saw the increase.  I started looking around for insurance companies... who (and this is important) do not share or use any kind of price comparison sites.

I make up a few quotes in the price range close to the previous years quote, going a little under for some and over for others and throwing in a couple of outliers that are much higher.

Every year I call them up... and we do the dance of 'let's see what we can do to bring it down'

Every year I get my new insurance with £10-20 of the last one.

The only time there's been a significant change in price, is when I've changed my car.

This year for example... renewal was an increase of 50%

I also moved to a much nicer area in a very small town surrounded by rural villages with off road parking for up to 4 cars.

Called them up... ended up getting a quote £40 cheaper than the previous years... in fact I added some extras to my policy so that I can now drive any other vehicle fully comp, some key cover for car/house and so forth.

Policy was £3 cheaper than last years.

Always challenge the increase, always go in prepared with alternative prices... by doing that they've kept me a customer for some 18yrs now... that's also 18yrs+ of no claims discount as the last (and only) time I lost my NCD was in 97 when I had my first accident (the only one that was my fault, 2 more since were other parties fault... like the muppet in a BMW who tried to overtake on the inside of a roundabout and turn left and the drunk/drugged uninsured driver who smashed up 3 cars driving down my folks road one night and left his now 3 wheel audi in the middle of the road and did a runner)

But it’s my point: so much unnecessary effort. It should all be streamline/automated for customer. Customers shouldn’t have to bargain like at a bazaar with utility companies.

does your 18 year ncb count as 18? Because I had 9 years ncb but when I had an accident, they deducted 3 and it became 2. (Yeah the maths 🤦🏻) because apparently 5 years is the maximum and they deduct from that. Which is super annoying.