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Consumers choosing dual fuel energy deals through price comparisons websites may unwittingly be paying £55 more than if they opted for separate gas and electricity suppliers.
A recent report from price-comparison website, Make It Cheaper has found that buying gas and electricity from separate suppliers reduces bills when compared to dual-fuel deals, but comparison websites tend to direct customers to acquire their gas and electricity as a bundle.
Scott Byrom, energy expert at Make It Cheaper, said: “Most people like the convenience of having both gas and electricity on the one bill but there’s a growing number who take a contrary view. Not only are they saving even more money by going for single fuel deals but they’re managing their consumption better by having a clearer picture of exactly how much they’re spending on each.”
He added: “These are savvy shoppers with no qualms about choosing the newer entrants to the market because you can be sure none of the big six are prepared to lower their prices to anywhere near this level.”
The findings compared households across different distribution regions and found that in every instance, a household would be better off picking one supplier for their gas and another for their electricity rather than choosing both from one supplier.
This saving was not obvious to anyone looking on a price-comparison site which gives the results of a dual-fuel saving, unless they were to specifically ask for separate results for gas and electricity and then compared the results with the dual-fuel saving.
The report added that the best fixed-price dual fuel deal on the market – offered by Extra Energy – currently averages at £991 a year but single fuel prices from across the market could bring the overall figure down to £936. When regional variations are taken into account, single fuel deals could mean even greater savings.
Households in the South West distribution region of England for example, could witness the biggest difference in price (up to 7 per cent or £77 a year), when comparing dual fuel deals with single fuel tariffs for their electricity and gas.
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