Ofgem's price rise warning to energy companies

In a move welcomed by uSwitch.com, the independent price comparison and switching service, Ofgem has announced that energy suppliers will now have to give 30 days notice of a price rise.

This will give customers affected time to shop around for a better deal. If suppliers object to this step, Ofgem will in turn refer the matter to the competition commission.

Ann Robinson, Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, says: "Given that the majority of households are not on the best deal, this is a very positive step and may at least alert people to the need to shop around. At the moment just one in ten households are on the most competitive plans in the market - this is a move that could see many more moving to take advantage of lower energy prices.

"We welcome any moves to increase transparency in the energy market and to ensure that consumers get a better deal from their provider. We have always argued that energy suppliers need to be more transparent in their communications with customers and today's announcement is a step in the right direction to achieving this."