‘Two million SMEs think there’s no competition in business energy’

Four in ten businesses believe that there’s no competition in the business energy market and no point in switching, suggests a new poll. That means the equivalent of 2 million […]

Four in ten businesses believe that there’s no competition in the business energy market and no point in switching, suggests a new poll.

That means the equivalent of 2 million SMEs could be missing out on potential savings of almost £1.8billion, according to the results of the latest Business Energy Barometer from EnergyForecaster.co.uk.

The poll also found fewer businesses are switching tariffs, with only 41% of UK firms switching supplier in the last 12 months, compared with 61% in the previous quarter.

James Constant, Chair of EnergyForecaster.co.uk said: “Competition is critical – if the business energy market isn’t seen as competitive then customers will not see the value in seeking out the best tariff. This seems to be the case currently, with the Barometer showing a significant decrease in the number of businesses switching.”

This could hurt businesses’ balance sheets and have a wider impact, Mr Constant added: “There could also be a knock-on impact on UK PLC – 8% of those polled say that 15% price rises would force them out of business and average business energy prices are up by almost 13% so far this year. The issue needs to be addressed as these businesses form the backbone of the UK economy.”

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