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22 Mar 2024

Rob Brown, co-director of Dalby Forest Cycle Hub, a not-for-profit hire scheme has been nominated for the Tourism Superstar 2024 award, run by VisitEngland.

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21 Mar 2024

An independent bottle shop and bar in Cheltenham has been named as the UK's Independent Beer and Wine Retailer of the Year 2024 at the Drinks Retailing Awards. 

21 Mar 2024

A number of organisations, including Bira (the British Independent Retailers’ Association), other trade associations, BIDs and unions have met with officials from the Welsh Government to...

21 Mar 2024

The British Independent Retailers’ Association (Bira) has reacted to data released by PwC and the Local Data Company exploring the state of the UK retail landscape.

8 Mar 2024

Daniel Blackham, editor of industry magazine BikeBiz, has been writing about his experience of completing the Cytech technical one qualification at training provider Spokes People in Milton...

6 Mar 2024

Cytech partner Activate Cycle Academy, the largest and most recognised training provider of bike maintenance and technical training courses to the UK’s cycle industry, recently welcomed a...

6 Mar 2024

The Greeting Card Association has reacted to a BBC Panorama programme lifting the lid on Royal Mail management prioritising parcel delivery over letters, which it says are in contradiction of...

4 Mar 2024

Pop star Kate Bush has been announced as an ambassador for this year's Record Store Day, on 20 April.

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Eight in ten SMEs being overcharged for their energy

Posted on in Business News , Cycles News , Creative News, Outdoor News

‘Big Six' energy providers charge more to SMEs than bigger businesses - 80 per cent of Britain's small businesses are overpaying.

Small businesses are being urged to switch to cheaper tariffs, after it emerged the ‘Big Six' energy providers charge more to SMEs than bigger businesses - and that a staggering 80 per cent of Britain's small businesses still haven't switched.

British Gas said last week it would hike electricity prices on its standard tariff by 12.5% from next month. The five other big suppliers - E.ON, Scottish Power, npower, EDF Energy, and SSE - have come out with similar increases. Industry analysts forecast further rises this winter, with the average annual cost of dual-fuel standard tariffs from the ‘Big Six' predicted to rise by between seven per cent and ten per cent.

‘Enough is enough,' says Phil Foster from Love Energy Savings.

‘It's time to take action to stop profiteering by the ‘Big Six' energy companies at a time when wholesale energy prices are falling. With British Gas becoming the latest to increase their prices during 2017, it's more important than ever that businesses review their energy costs to ensure they are on a contract that is working for them. Wholesale electricity prices have fallen slightly during 2017 and changes in the market offer plenty of potential for businesses to shop around for a better deal on their energy costs.'

His plea comes as it was revealed that more than three million households have switched supplier this year - an increase of 14 per cent. However, those taking advantage of switching are still in a minority, with seven out of ten households overpaying.

Phil Foster explains the situation was even worse for small businesses, with eight out of every ten SMEs paying too much. The data was reveals in a report last year by the Competition and Markets Authority, which showed that the vast majority of SMEs were still on standard tariffs.

Phil Foster adds, ‘That bills will continue to rise is becoming increasingly inevitable and failing to review your bills and find a tariff that offers you the best value for money can have significant impact on your business's bottom line. The gap between the ‘Big Six' companies' fixed price deals and their standard variable tariffs has already widened by more than half since November.'

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