Potential savings for Northland residents

Potential savings for Northland residents

Northlander’s are being urged to check their electricity provider, as switching rates are in decline despite a large increase in retail brands entering the local market.

New figures from the Electricity Authority estimate that less than 15,000 Northland households switched electricity providers last year, a decrease of 13 percent from 2013. Households could have saved $9,437,315 or an average annual saving of $133.

Electricity Authority Chief Executive Carl Hansen is urging Northland consumers to explore their options and switch to a provider that may be better suited to them.

“Northland’s electricity market is very competitive, with up to 13 brands now active in the region, due to five new retailers entering the market just last year. Northland is also the fastest growing market, with 1,397 new connections in 2014. Now is a perfect time for consumers to shop around and check their deal.”

“The new brands available to Northland consumers are Energy Online, Glo-Bug, Bosco Connect, Pulse Energy and Simply Energy.”

“It’s important consumers realise that their choice of retailer makes no difference to the reliability of their electricity supply – those outcomes are affected by the performance of their local distribution network and by Transpower, and is the same regardless of which retailer consumers choose.”

Across New Zealand we continue to see high switching rates. New figures from the Electricity Authority show that over 385,000 households switched electricity providers in 2014. If all eligible Kiwi households had switched to the cheapest electricity provider during the year they could have collectively saved $281 million or an average of $162 per household.

“As winter really starts to take a hold, now is the right time to check your plan,” says Hansen. “Even if you’ve switched providers in the past, we encourage all consumers to regularly check, as offers change. Heading to the What’s My Number website makes this easy.”

“Checking your deal doesn’t mean you have to change plans, and it doesn’t have to be about finding the cheapest provider. Sometimes it’s just a matter of knowing what alternative services are being offered and what other incentives might be right for you,” Hansen says.

Changing electricity suppliers is very straightforward. A recent Electricity Authority survey of consumers showed that 90% found it easy. Once you have identified the potential savings on What’s My Number you can simply click through to Consumer NZ’s Powerswitch website to compare your options and start the
switching process. Alternatively, you can call the new provider who will manage the change for you.

What’s My Number is run by the Electricity Authority in partnership with Consumer NZ, and puts choice in consumers’ hands by helping them to shop around. To find out if you’re getting the best deal for your power, visit www.whatsmynumber.org.nz.

ENDS

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