Price shock on energy deals

I got same deal without co-operative: householder
COUNCIL chiefs have defended their Helping Hands energy scheme after it was claimed they didn’t negotiate the best deal.

More than 8,700 residents signed up to the Oldham Energy Co-operative, designed to combine purchasing power to get a cheaper deal on gas and electricity.

An auction was then held among energy firms to offer their lowest price.

Peter Nickerson, from Shaw, said he thought it was a brilliant idea - but was “gobsmacked” when he received an email containing one of the winning offers from Ovo Energy.

He said: “I’m already with OVO. The idea is brilliant but it just seems like a complete waste of time when I can go on the websites myself and get the same deal.

“It’s the same as going on a price comparison website. I thought the whole point was that they would negotiate cheaper deals than are available to the public.”

The initiative has resulted in overall average savings per household of £171 a year.

Councillor Arooj Shah, said: “Thousands of people who might never have considered energy switching took this chance to make big savings.

“We always knew consumers who regularly switch providers or use comparison websites may not make savings.”


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