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The Electricity industry has reached a tipping point and the behaviour of the Electricity companies has reached an all-time low, says Adrian Merrick, former head of Energy Australia’s retailer arm, who is now the chief executive of Energy Locals, according to an article appearing on Sydney Morning Herald dated 03.05.2018, written byCole Latimer.
Mr. Merrick said when electricity companies change their electricity prices on July 1 they must decrease bill prices. This is because the wholesale prices have fallen and networks have cut costs.
Energy Umpire, a pioneer in lobbying for consumer’s right to get the cheapest electricity companies, is watching what the Electricity companies are hiding up their sleeves to offer their customers on July 1. As we have seen on a number of occasions in the past, customers are usually presented with a bewildering array of offers, including unimaginable percentage discounts, which really mean nothing as our analysis has frequently proven!
The Australian Energy Market Commission last month announced new rules to stop “pseudo-discount deals that leave consumers worse off” where companies provide a higher discount off a higher base tariff. Most of the consumers believe that they would be better off with the company who offers the highest discount and companies take this as a marketing gimmick, trying to lure customers with an eyewash.
Mr. Merrick backed flat rates, or no discounts, as a way to provide more clarity for the market. Knowing how the Electricity companies operate, we doubt if either of these would be applied.
We could not agree more with Mr. Merrick on his opinion about unethical actions by electricity companies, when their actions clearly indicate the motives. But the motive of Energy Umpire is to manage consumers’ electricity bills and ensure they get the cheapest electricity company, all the time!