Roumour around uswitch - maybe not as independant as first thought?

sarahshotton

I've heard a rumour (possibly all it is) That big companies (British gas was named) pay a fee to Uswitch to doctor their searches so they come out on top? does anyone know more about this?

strangly enough Uswitch do say british gas will be cheaper for me, but money supermarket say atlantic. how do I choose? Are they really as independant as we thought? :think:

Farway

Who ever said U switch was independant?

Never were, they rely on switching commision as do others

So to a cynic like me, the larger the commision the more recommends, bit like so called IFAs IMO

Basically it comes down to DYOR and use your real kilowatt useage and real prices from the suppliers sites

sarahshotton

I just thought that they'd be fairer and actually try to save people money rather than increasing the likes of british gas' profits.

so the moral is to do the work myself to find out the 'real' cheapest. What's the saying? you want a job done properly then do it yourself?
I suppose that way You know your getting the best deal.

thanx, i wasn't sure if it was just a rumour or not.

MoneyMiser

Farway wrote: »

Who ever said U switch was independant?

Never were, they rely on switching commision as do others

So to a cynic like me, the larger the commision the more recommends, bit like so called IFAs IMO

Basically it comes down to DYOR and use your real kilowatt useage and real prices from the suppliers sites

Are you being serious??

Do you really think that if a company pays more money to a comparrison site they will appear top of the list? That is ridiculous, we are not talking about sponsored links here.

These comparrison sites are regulated by Energy Watch so if there was even a hint that Uswitch were doctoring results based on commision they would be shut down!!

I think you need to do your homework before you make statements like that.

I wouldn't mind but British Gas and Uswitch had a massive falling out a few years ago so don't do business together. Therefore British Gas will pay NO commision at all to Uswitch.

MM

Premier_2

As MoneyMiser quite rightly says, British Gas does not pay uSwitch any commission at all (and as a result you cannot apply for any British Gas Product through uSwitch)

However Atlantic does pay MoneySupermarket commission for deals placed through that site - perhaps that helps you with your decision?

MoneyMiser

Premier wrote: »

However Atlantic does pay MoneySupermarket commission for deals placed through that site - perhaps that helps you with your decision?

Basically if you can apply through a comparrison site then the energy company will pay that company a commision. In no way will this effect the place they appear in the listings. They are listed in price order and usually show the unit rates so you can always work it out for yourself if you have your annual consumption.

Again, they are regulated by Energy Watch and would be shut down if they were showing companies higher than they should be due to commision.

MM

utilitybroker

MoneyMiser wrote: »

In no way will this effect the place they appear in the listings.

In September 2007, Energywatch found that information provided by Uswitch's energy price comparison website was 'biased and not impartial' and Uswitch were provided with notice that the Energywatch code of practise had been breached .

They were asked by Energywatch to change how it displayed comparison results and information so that consumers could enjoy unbiased results. Uswitch complied with the Energywatch request,and is still accredited by them.