Small Businesses Paying £2.5bn too Much for Energy

LONDON, March 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Huddlebuy and Make It Cheaper launch 'The Great Business Power Cut'

http://www.huddlebuy.co.uk/greatbusinesspowercut

UK small businesses are overpaying for their energy bills to the tune of £2.5bn according to new figures released today. Small businesses should be saving £2,500 on average a year on their energy bills - more than 30% of a typical annual bill. Many businesses stuck on uncompetitive tariffs could be saving up to 70% on their energy costs.

In response, Huddlebuy.co.uk, the daily deals site for small businesses, and Make It Cheaper, the business energy experts, have teamed up to launch the 'Great Business Power Cut' campaign - giving UK businesses the power to save billions of pounds a year.

The campaign has started with biggest ever UK online group buying initiative launched specifically for businesses. Experts at Huddlebuy and Make It Cheaper will then use the collective buying power of thousands of businesses to negotiate better deals for the nation's hard-working entrepreneurs.

Saurav Chopra, CEO of Huddlebuy said: "Small businesses are paying through the nose when it comes to their energy bills. They are getting ripped off and we are determined to change that. Our Great Business Power Cut campaign harnesses the power of businesses joining forces to save billions of pounds. It has the potential to change the face of the business energy sector permanently."

Jonathan Elliott, managing director at Make It Cheaper, said: "The rates that energy companies charge their business customers can vary enormously. Knowing what's a good rate, how to get on it and then stay on it isn't necessarily that easy. However, that's exactly what the Great Business Power Cut is there to do, free of charge, for anyone who comes on board."

Doug Richard, former TV Dragon and leading entrepreneur: "There's no nice way of saying this but energy companies are taking advantage of small businesses by making billing opaque and switching complex. The demon intent in this is to take them to the cleaners with rollover rates. What's scandalous is there's nothing stopping suppliers from doing it, which is why the Great Business Power Cut is a big deal for smaller firms. It provides the necessary protection for anyone who's short of time or, quite frankly, ill-informed about buying their energy and means it's one less headache for them to worry about."

For more details:

Saurav Chopra
saurav@huddlebuy.com
+44(0)20-7748-3770