Brian Dixon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 23 Sep 2008
- Posts: 23,940
4 February 2009
16:3214705i wonder why then barry,or is it that they are over priced.
Guest 655- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,247
4 February 2009
17:5814712Brian, in a competitive market you will always have some with higher prices than others, its the way it works. You can if you wish describe one with a higher price as 'overpriced' and as such they would deserve to lose market share until they bring their prices into line.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
4 February 2009
20:3214728barry
the energy market is not competitive at all, at any one time one company is more expensive than the rest, then a month later another company is, it then goes on like that.
unless someone has the time to sit in and sift through all the tarriffs and continuall changes, they will end up over a period of time paying the same as everybody else.
the energy giants have got us all by the gonads, when oil prices went up, the gas and electricity bills went up almost simultanneously.
they have been plummeting for a long time, and we will get a small reduction once the cold weather is nearly over
Guest 655- Registered: 13 Mar 2008
- Posts: 10,247
4 February 2009
20:3814729Howard. The energy company I am with offer a guarantee, to match or be cheaper than the cheapest of the big six energy suppliers. I am happy as I benefit from the free market. Try a bit of research howard.
4 February 2009
20:4614731As an old leftie, I sometimes wonder how we can "sell" energy - can we "sell" air? Food similarly - I realise the old choice thing, but at bottom we all need to eat to live. At what point would you refuse food to someone?
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
4 February 2009
20:5414732i think that a lot of pensioners and people on low incomes and large families will understand that bern.
Sid Pollitt
4 February 2009
23:4514738I agree with you Bern and I think that water companies at least should be 'mutualised' so that the consumer owns them rather than privately. On the gas and electric issue, I know someone who 'sold' it over the phone for a company. He told me that he gave a quote to one guy who when ballistic that it wasnt less expensive than his supplier and asked why Xpower could do it for much less as 'you're supposed to be cheap' and my friend told him that it was the beauty of the market, stopped his whinging dead in its tracks.
What always baffles me is when capitalists refuse to make a profit. I discussed this with an Irish friend a few years ago and he was of a similar opinion, why dont they want our money? I'm sure there are other examples when they say they dont want our cash but the one we talked of was when they'd put up No Irish or No Blacks in their window. Of course they're not allowed to do that now because of pc types like me, but why would they not want to turn a profit?
Alec Sheldon
- Location: Dover
- Registered: 18 Aug 2008
- Posts: 1,036
5 February 2009
03:2414746I received my electricity bill yesterday from EDF, the most complicated piece of paperwork that I have seen for a long time. After I had fathomed it out it worked out that I was £20 in credit. This was a six month period not your normal quarterly bill. I pay £43 per month by Direct Debit and they wanted to up it to £70, a 65% increase. Their wording was "we have done a review of your payments and they need to change to £70 a month. You don't need to do a thing, we will automatically make this change for you."
I immediately rang them up to query the increase asking, despite being in credit, they felt the need to increase my payments. The reply was "er, er, well there might be a increase in future and we wouldn't like you to go into debt". I said that I thought that prices were supposed to be coming down not up. Another "er,er well we are not quite sure yet". I told them that I wasn't very happy with the situation and he had the nerve to say " you don't want to pay £70 then" I said "no way" so he said "OK we will leave it as it is at £43".
I asked how they arrived at these silly figures and I was told it was down to the computers.
I am getting on in years but if some poor old dear living alone had got a letter like this she may have just paid up if she could afford it without querying the bill.
5 February 2009
08:5814751Or even if she couldn't afford it for fear of debt or cold.
howard mcsweeney1- Location: Dover
- Registered: 12 Mar 2008
- Posts: 62,352
5 February 2009
20:2214801i get the same problems with every energy supplier that i have used in the past few years.
the best one was brutish gas.
i had been paying so much at a time on a payment card through the spring and summer, in order to be in credit for the winter big bills.
they decided that i was too much ahead and sent me a cheque for the amount in credit.
the following day, i received a threatening letter demanding to know why i had not kept up regular payments.
the phone companies are even better, will save that for another time.
Sid Pollitt
11 February 2009
16:4415200The Tory party leader David Cameron, aka Lord Snooty, has said people's "faith in capitalism and free enterprise" must be restored despite the global downturn. He didnt say less regulation and more greed though.
11 February 2009
21:3915253"Faith" - an odd word to use regarding such a potentially cruel and unfair system without real ethical substance.