Energy rip-offs must stop - Andrew Pring
The scandal of licensees being ripped off by unscrupulous energy companies grows greater by the day.
Big, national, supposedly trustworthy power suppliers are either hiding behind utility agents, who cynically gull and cheat landlords and landladies, or are doing the gulling and cheating themselves. Meanwhile, the Government and its energy watchdog take no action to stop this rank dishonesty in an industry that was once proud to serve the nation, before a botched privatisation appears to have thrown integrity to the winds.
From the stories told to the Morning Advertiser by scores of our readers, the level of outright lying by competing companies is staggering. Banana republics would blush at the underhand business tactics being employed to persuade licensees to switch suppliers. Russian power barons would gasp at their ruthlessness.
It just does not seem possible in a sophisticated 21st-century business economy that such a fundamental and basic essential commodity should be so unregulated. Yet, extraordinarily, that is the case. Energywatch, the Government body supposed to ensure the free market in energy supply works fairly, has not been given the powers to intervene effectively in individual business rip-offs. It was only late last year that the Government extended Energywatch's scope to the business sector - and since then its staff have wrung their hands at some of the abuses brought to their notice, but proved ineffectual in helping the individual businessman fight his corner in what seems to be a deliberately over-complicated tariff negotiation.
It is simply not good enough for Government to allow this situation to continue. Caveat emptor goes only so far. At a time of unprecedented energy rises, and the threat of more to come, Government must show power companies they cannot behave like wild-west cowboys when dealing with Britain's small business people.
Licensees will have long since decided that this is the weekly trade publication that they turn to first for authoritative and independent coverage of the licensed sector. But they may be interested to learn that their preference for the MA is shared by head offices and brewers across the trade too. New and totally independent research confirms that the MA is the whole trade's favourite paper. What else can we say, other than "Thank You".
