Australians can save hundreds on their electricity bills by taking a few simple steps recommended by industry experts.
With energy prices rising, Australians are being told to follow a few simple steps to ensure they don’t pay too much for electricity.
By talking to their retailer or switching to a cheaper retailer by checking out a range of available comparison websites, consumers can get a better deal to help them get through the winter.
First, customers should know that they can contact their energy retailer and ask if they are getting the best deal available from the company – something the retailer is legally bound to answer honestly.
“If your retailer has an offer available that will leave you better, they will let you know when you ask them,” said Lynne Gallagher, managing director of Energy Consumers Australia.
Ms Gallagher said it was understandable that many Australians were reluctant to take on the challenge of finding a better energy deal, but said with a host of online tools available, saving hundreds of dollars was surprisingly simple.
“Few of us like to spend time waiting or browsing energy retailer websites, but you’d be surprised how quick and easy it can be to find a better deal,” she said. declared.
Once customers have established the best price available from their current retailer, it’s time to shop for others.
The easiest way to do this is to use the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) price comparison website, Simplified energywhich allows customers to compare retailers by providing a few details or uploading an invoice.
AER estimates that residential customers can save about $443 or 24% on their bill and small businesses can save about $1,308 or 29% by switching.
From July 1, a cap on consumer prices imposed by the AER will increase by 7.2 to 14.1% for NSW, South Australia and South East Queensland and by 5% in Victoria .
The Default Market Offering (DMO) is a “safety net” price cap intended to protect customers from unjustifiably high prices.
Announcing the change last month, AER President Clare Savage said her organization needed to balance customer concerns with rising wholesale energy prices, which rose 41%. 4% in New South Wales and 49.5% in Queensland over the past year.
“In setting these new DMO prices, we understand the significant impact they will have on some consumers who may already be struggling with cost of living pressures,” Ms Savage said.
“Setting DMO is not about setting the lowest price. We are required to set a price that will allow retailers to recover their costs, earn a reasonable margin and help retailers to compete and offer better offers and better products in a competitive retail environment.
Sarah McNamara, chief executive of the Australian Energy Council, explained that most customers did not pay for the default offer, but many did.
“The default offers are not the cheapest offers; they exist for customers who are not looking for a better energy deal,” she said.
“We used to tell everyone, look at your energy bill and ask, ‘How can I get a better deal?'”