British Gas customers would be better off saying no to 5% cut

With British Gas announcing a 5% reduction for its 8.6m gas customers, comparison site Gocompare.com questions whether it is enough to turn the tide in the energy price wars.

Jeremy Cryer, energy spokesperson at Gocompare.com, said: “While offering slightly more than E.on’s 3.5% reduction last week, the fact British Gas aren’t implementing the price cut with immediate effect means this isn’t a particularly generous offer. By the time British Gas hands over its 5% reduction on 27 February, standard tariff gas customers could have taken advantage of the industry’s new 17 day faster switching and secured a best-buy fixed tariff deal, potentially saving them hundreds of pounds.

“British Gas’ decision to delay this reduction is even more perplexing when you consider how competitive the energy market has become over the past few weeks. Last week alone, the top spot for cheapest fixed energy tariff traded hands three times as E.on, First Utility and Extra Energy announced new tariffs respectively.

“With British Gas being the second of the ‘Big Six’ to announce a price cut, it would seem that it’s only a matter of time before the remaining big providers make reductions to their own rates. However, it remains to be seen whether this will be enough to combat the competitive tariffs that have been put out by the smaller, challenger energy companies.”

As a result of the price cuts in recent months, the energy best-buy table is now entirely comprised of sub-£1,000 tariffs - the first time that’s happened since mid-2012.