Consumer Advice October 2009
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Save money on
gas and electricity
As we head into the coldest part of the year, it's worth making
sure you're not paying more than you should for the energy you
use. Here's how to get the best price you can:
- Go to the comparison sites Pop in a few details like your
postcode, who currently supplies your energy, which tariff
you're on and how much you pay - or for more accurate results
how much you actually use. You'll get offered various tariffs
from different suppliers, showing you how much you could save. We
were suggested E.ON's Fix Online V3 tariff on three sites, with
savings of around £400 a year compared to our British Gas
dual-fuel plan fixed until 2010. Though this tariff may not be
available for long, you can see what other tariffs E.ON has at
www.eonenergy.com. We tried comparison sites: http://www.uswitch.com/; http://www.energyhelpline.com/ and http://www.moneysupermarket.com/.
- Check the non-listers Some companies don't pay to be listed
on comparison sites, so it's worth looking at them too. Marks
& Spencer's energy arm is M and S Energy (www.mandsenergy.com), and using the same information
as above, it offered us a saving of just over £172 with a
£20 M&S voucher for joining.
- Compare dual fuel and separate accounts It's common that if
you get gas and electricity together from the same supplier, that
they will be cheaper. But it's not always the case so look at
separate supplier options when you do your comparisons.
- Grab a freebie In their attempt to get you to switch via their
sites, some comparison sites and/or suppliers offer you incentives.
We found 12 bottles of wine from uSwitch if you swap both gas and
electricity - search for free wine on the uSwitch site.
- Pay by direct debit The suppliers like to know they've got
a regular amount of money coming in each month so they're
likely to give you a better price if you pay this way - it could be
as much as 10% cheaper. You'll also pay less if you handle your
account online.
- Keep track of your use Get into the habit of reading your meter quarterly and checking it against your bills. If you're paying too much - or too little - let the supplier know.
Questions and
answers
Restaurant let-down
Q: I recently went out to eat with my husband, his food
was okay but my main course was so disappointing. We paid the bill
and muttered to ourselves as we didn't know what to do. What
would you recommend?
A: It's that typically English thing - the
waiter asks if the food's okay and we say yes, while finding it
inedible. But you can and should do something about it. Like any
other service, you're paying for it and it should be up to
scratch. So if it happens again, stop eating the food, alert the
waiter and if they're unable or unwilling to help, ask for the
manager. Request that what's wrong - cold, undercooked or
whatever - be put right or ask to have something else instead.
If it's that bad that you don't want a replacement, go
elsewhere but pay for what you've eaten so far. Leave what you
think is a 'fair and reasonable amount' - and do be fair -
along with your name and address. If you have proof of ID, the
police won't get involved as you're not committing a crime
and the restaurant has your details if they feel the need to pursue
you for what they think you owe. But it's unlikely if your food
was that bad that they will bother.
Are there any
'good' banks?
Q: Is there such a thing as ethical banking? In
the current climate, it seems that most bankers have been doing
rather well out of us but I'm after a bank that has better
scruples around the world. Where should I go?
A: If you're after savings, Triodos is the
bank that's recommended time and again. Founded nearly 40 years
ago in the Netherlands, it takes the money you invest with them,
using it to finance only those organisations that benefit people or
the environment. Clients include Ecotricity and the Soil
Association. Its Online Cash ISA account currently has an annual
interest rate of 1% a - go to http://www.triodos.co.uk/ for more.
Triodos doesn't yet offer a current account as money is in and
out of accounts so quickly and not put aside to be invested in the
way that savings are. But the Co-op does - http://www.co-operativebank.co.uk/. In 2008 it was
voted the UK's most ethical brand; it doesn't just look at
the financial performance of the funds it manages but also checks
out social, ethical, environmental and other company issues - like
'fat cat' pay. You'd think it would treat its customers
a little more fairly too but a quick look at the charges for its
Standard Account show the Co-op doesn't fair much better than
other banks though it does charge an annual interest rate of 15.9%
on overdrafts, compared to 19.9 at HSBC, for instance.
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