Utility Week

UTILITY WEEK | 1ST - 7TH FEBRUARY 2019 | 21 Customers Energy customers are expected to face "staggering" bill increases of up to £302, accord- ing to new data from Uswitch. This represents a rise of 36 per cent as 86 fixed deals come to an end this month, adding £28 mil- lion to the energy bills of approxi- mately 200,000 households. The average hike will be £140 per year and households facing the biggest increases are those ENERGY Supplier calls for 'price collar' as Uswitch predicts huge rise in bills with Together Energy (£302) and Peterborough Energy (£258). Together Energy chief execu- tive Paul Richards said the sup- plier will not engage in competing with "unsustainable loss-making tariffs". "We strongly believe as well as a price cap, there should be a price collar," he said. "The price for a one-year deal is the same as a three-year deal. "The £302 is compared against our 19 December tariff, which is the cheapest tariff we have ever rolled out. It is around £100 cheaper than any other tariff we have put out over our past two years of trading. This was made available to a limited number of customers." Peterborough Energy is in a white label agreement with Ovo in two of the 14 regions in which Ovo operates. This week Bristol Water 'still has too many complaints' Consumer Council for Water says the company's number of written complaints remains a concern Bristol Water has more work to do to reduce the number of customer complaints, the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) has warned. The company was scolded for its poor performance in CCWater's annual report published last September. Since then, the number of written complaints made to Bristol Water rose by just over 1 per cent during the first six months of 2018/19, compared with the same period the previous year. CCWater expressed disappointment with the rise as it had called on the company to improve its service. Bristol Water was shown to have the largest rise in complaints of any water company in England and Wales during 2017/18, according to CCWater's report. The water company responded by taking a series of measures that have helped to "substantially reduce" the number of calls made to it by customers to resolve problems – but its written complaint numbers remain a concern, CCWater warned. David Heath, western chair for CCWater, said: "We recognise the company has taken steps to try and improve the way it engages with customers, particularly on social media, but we need to see evidence those changes are reducing complaint numbers." Ben Newby, chief customer officer at Bristol Water, said: "We're pleased that we have seen an 18 per cent drop in total complaints for this year so far compared to the same period last year. "We appreciate there is still work for us to do on writ- ten complaints. We continue to work with CCWater on improving our customers' experience with us and thank them for their continued scrutiny on this area." KP ELECTRICITY Centrica creates dedicated EV services team British Gas owner Centrica has created a dedicated team for developing electric vehicle (EV) charging services, called Mobility Ventures. The unit will work with the rest of the business to create deals that combine energy supply and charging tariffs, alongside other services such as optimisation and so£ware applications. As a first step, the team is working with car manufacturers to enable their dealership net- works to offer a "one stop shop" for charging support. Charles Cameron, director of technology and engineering services at Centrica and chair- man of Centrica Innovations, said: "The direction of travel for EVs is clear but we know from talking to our customers and partners that many are strug- gling to find their way through the implications of rollout at scale. "With a global network of over 15,000 engineers and technicians, and expertise in designing and managing energy solutions offered through Centrica Business Solutions, I believe we are uniquely positioned to develop a simple, holistic solution for customers that will address many of the challenges around EV adoption." In November, British Gas launched a smart time-of-use tariff for EV owners that offers cheaper electricity overnight. WATER New retailer bids to enter the market A new retailer, Amber Water, has applied to Ofwat for a licence to enter the open water market. The Cardiff-based company, part of the Amber Energy Group, claimed it will package water retail services in a way that "best suits its clients' ever-changing needs". In its application, it said: "Integral to this is to be pioneers in the build-to-rent market, expanding its water division to offer a retail service to its current clients – both cor- porate and small and medium size businesses." The prospective entrant's ambition is to become a "leading" water retailer and business solutions provider. It said it "understands and appreciates" the inherent link between water and energy. The newest entrants to the water retail market are Utility Bid- der, Smarta Water, Aquaflow and First Business Water, which have all been granted licences. Axis for Business and Olympos Water have also applied for licences, but these have not yet been granted. Additionally, several busi- nesses have applied to supply their own retail services. These include Greene King, Whitbread, Marston's, Coca-Cola European Partners, Blackpool Council, Berendsen, Stonegate, Heineken and BT. Newby: 'there is still work for us to do' Uswitch has warned custom- ers on tariffs due to come to an end that they will automatically be rolled onto their supplier's default tariffs. Rik Smith, energy expert at Uswitch, said: "Around 200,000 households will see their energy deal end this month and with the threat of price hikes around the corner they are set for a double blow unless they take action."

• Cover