The Ofcom price accreditation scheme

When looking to switch a utility it should be very simple, by checking the best offer via a price comparison site.

However there are 2 problems :
The utility companies may not be transparent (over the years this has become the norm for the industry but perhaps the government are now reining them in (?))
The price comparison sites depend on affiliate income and may not be transparent to the point of showing only affiliet linked options

This is how the culture of price comparison - utility companies has developed in the internet age. Some may regard the industry policy as being as much 'legal fraud' as possible (hidden costs etc).

It looks like the government may now be doing something about this with the Ofcom price accredition scheme. Well I hope so ! I thought Ofcom were merging with another 'Office', but hopefully this link keeps working ok.

About The Ofcom price accreditation scheme

Looking at the list, not many have joined (yet). At the moment I will keep my scepticism of price comparison sites including those listed.

I bought Energizer AA Accu Recharge Extreme 2300mih 4 pack rechargeable Ni-mh batteries

AA Energizer ACCU Recharge extreme 4 pack

Bought : 4-pack AA size rechargeable batteries
Brand : Energizer Accu Recharge Extreme
Storage Capacity : 2300mah
Type : NiMh
For use : Digital camera

Price : £6.88 in Amazon UK(slightly cheaper on Ebay ?)

Summary : Good reliable rechargeable battery. Duracell batteries now seem slightly cheaper (same company ?).

Score : 8/10
Score per cost : 8/10

My knowledge of batteries : very basic

I needed decent AA batteries for my camera. I always go for rechargeable. After a look around I plumped for Energizer Accu recharge extreme Ni-Mh batteries. Mine hold 2300 mah charge, which is decent. On the Energizer website the newest AA recharge battery seems to hold 2450 mah (which is not much more storage) but I have seen a photo of a 2500 mah battery, so 2450 mah may not be their longest storage. I guess that makes 2300 mah the 'mid range' and therefore can be found relatively cheaper. Mine were £6.88. The 2450mah seem a lot more expensive (more than double ?), so the 2300 mih storage seem relatively a lot cheaper. I have just started using the batteries and will update with any new information later.

Duracell batteries : I have also noticed that Duracell seem to be the main rival to the Energizer brand and their generally equivalent batteries seem a bit cheaper. I have seen a 4-pack of Duracell 2450mah rechargeable batteries for around £5.50 on Amazon UK (see link below). I would have probably bought them instead if I had noticed. I already own some Duracell rechargeable AA batteries and they seem fine.

BTY rechargeable AA battery : poor quality

BTY rechargeable batteries : I have bought the cheap BTY brand of rechargeable batteries sold on Ebay and they were abysmal. One was dud, and the others are quickly drained, don't hold storage well, and don't seem to fully charge.

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links :

UK Amazon : Energizer Extreme Rechargeable AA 2300mAh Batteries - 4 pack
UK Amazon : Duracell Rechargeable Accu Supreme 2450 mAh AA Batteries - 4-Pack
Energizer website
Duracell UK website

Changing elctricity and gas supplier : Went with Npower August 2013 deal

searching cheapest duel-fuel utility supplier

Had a look at the Utility market to see if changing my gas and electricty supplier was worthwhile.

It certainly seems that for duel fuel for me the best by quite a bit (Aside from First Utility who were not too far behind) was :
NPower Billsaver August 2013

If you are on Economy 7 it may be likely that another offer is better but I can't see past this for duel fuel. They say the tariffs should be 7% below their standard tariff until August 2013 and also that after a year I get a £100 discount (which makes up the bulk of the savings). It looks like they understand that people are dodging the price comparison sites and pocketing the affiliate money themselves through sites like Quidco, so they are giving that money later to the customers as a reason to stay, and it seems that the price comparison sites are avoided.

I tried to join via a price comparison site anyway, to see if I get another bonus (around £17). I went through Quidco and from there linked through to the Which comparison site. They are sending my direct debit agreement (filled it in online).

So in summary :
It seems I may save around £137 per year on duel fuel
I went to Quidco
From there I linked through to Which Comparison site
On there, I signed up for NPower Billsaver August 2013

home energy comparison : my favourite comparison site

I am wary of all comparison sites now but at the moment I prejudicely prefer the energyhelpline one.

energyhelpline home enrgy price comparison