The government was last week accused of letting energy giants off the hook on a series of rip-offs from inaccurate billing to punitive rates if customers pay by cheque.
Gordon Brown, the prime minister, unveiled a £910m package including free cavity-wall and loft insulation for low-income households and pensioners and 50% discounts for everyone else.
However, energy giants continue to engage in “dirty tricks” that can cost consumers hundreds of pounds a year, wiping out the benefit of the government’s energy-efficiency measures.
Over this weekend, German-owned Eon has stopped allowing customers to switch to its cheapest deal, the Extra Saver Version 8 tariff at £903 a year, through comparison sites in an effort to restrict the number of customers getting the tariff.
Critics also said that consumers will ultimately pay the cost of the government’s package. More than half the new money in the fuel plan — £560m — will be raised from suppliers to expand the Carbon Efficiency Reduction Target which obliges them to set aside money for improving energy efficiency in homes.
Energy companies pass on the costs, adding about £38 a year to bills — up £29 from last year. Although the government has said it does not “expect” the extra allocation to be passed on, there is no guarantee. Mark Todd of comparison firm Energyhelpline said: “It would have been better for customers if the extra cash was passed directly on to customers who need it.”
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