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UTILITY WEEK | 14Th - 20Th FEbrUarY 2014 | 27 Customers I am the customer Paul King "Many tradesmen clearly don't 'get' energy efficiency" Aer sharing our home for nine months with a variety of trades- men, it's good to say goodbye, but not good riddance, because they were a great bunch whose work has improved our quality of life. Yes, we've got a lovely new kitchen and a stylish new bath- room, and utility too. But the warmest glow comes from the things you can't now see – the solid wall and underfloor insula- tion, the double-glazing in the period sash windows. And then there's the LEDs that have cut several hundred pounds a year in wasted energy if we increased the insulation, and specified LED lights that will pay back in no time"? How much extra work might be won, and how much energy saved across the hundreds of thousands of homes that undertake repair and refur- bishment work every year? Better informed customer, or better informed builder? Let's agree to meet in the middle. Paul King, chief executive, UK Green Building Council electricity consumption for our lighting by a factor of 10. But it wasn't without its chal- lenges. Even many of the most able tradesmen clearly don't "get" energy efficiency. Yes, they know building regulations require a cer- tain depth of insulation, but point out the bits they missed – the gaps and thermal bridges – and they tend to look at you as if you come from another planet. And as for specifying natural, breathable materials – well, you must just be hellbent on flushing money down your dual-flush toilet. Now I guess I'm not the easi- est customer. But what would happen if my builder came to me and said "we could save you This week Six companies curb final year price rises Six water and sewerage companies say they will not take up the full price rises allowed Six water and sewerage compa- nies will not take up the full price rises allowed by Ofwat this year. Anglian Water, Southern Water, Wessex Water, York- shire Water, Affinity Water and United Utilities all announced on Monday that they would not take up their full allowances for the final year of AMP5. The move was described as a "step in the right direction" by the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater). South West Water and Sembcorp Bournemouth Water were the only two companies to cut bills this year – by 3 per cent and 2.5 per cent, respectively – which they did by bringing forward savings from the next AMP period. CCWater said it welcomed the efforts from the major- ity of the water companies to rein in bills, but that it was disappointed that Thames Water and water-only companies Bristol Water and Dee Valley are to increase bills above inflation. Thames was the only one of the ten water and sewerage companies to increase bills above inflation, announcing a rise of 3.4 per cent. CCWater chair Dame Yve Buckland said: "The vast majority of customers will still see an actual increase in their water bill at a time when many face difficult finan- cial circumstances. "Our most pressing challenge is to now make sure companies and Ofwat deliver prices for the next five years which are affordable and acceptable to customers." Overall, the average annual household water and sewerage bill will rise by £8, from £385 to £393. CM EnErgY MPs call for cap on supplier 'stealth tax' MPs are urging energy suppliers to cut the "stealth tax" of extra charges on the bills of consumers who do not pay by direct debit. Conservative backbencher Robert Halfon introduced a bill to the House of Commons calling for a cap of £2 per month to be established to prevent energy firms from charging a "premium" to customers not using direct debit. He told MPs that an average of £80 in "excessive charges" is added to the bills of customers who do not pay by direct debit. Consumer watchdog Which? has been campaigning on the issue and said it was "worried" some customers are being "overly penalised" and called on Ofgem to "crack down on companies that are exploiting consumers". Ofgem said the differential between the payment methods can only be justified by cost and it would act if it found suppliers not complying with this rule. WaTEr Bill 'no disadvantage to domestic sector' The Department for Environ- ment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has insisted that the introduction of competition in the non-residential water retail sector will not put household customers at a disadvantage as the Water Bill entered the committee stage in the House of Lords for the first time. During the debate last week, Labour's Lord Whitty said an amendment should be made to the Bill which "would ensure that there is no ambiguity and that the intention of the Bill is to introduce retail competition in the non-domestic sector, but with no disadvantage in either price or in kind to the domestic sector". However, Lord de Mauley, the Parliamentary undersecretary of Defra, argued that there were already mechanisms in place to prevent business customers' bills being subsidised by household bills: "Water companies will be incentivised to introduce effi- ciencies and invest in improved customer services in order to retain and attract non-household customers. Household custom- ers are also likely to benefit from these improvements," he said. WaTEr Ownership transfer would hit customers The transfer of privately owned supply pipes to water companies would add to customer bills, according to regulator Ofwat. In response to a government consultation on the proposals, Ofwat said the move would place a cost of more than £4 on customer bills, in return for only £2 of benefit. Glass half full: rises will be lower than expected