Green MP challenges energy companies on contract rollovers

The Green MP for Brighton Pavilion has challenged energy companies to help small businesses by ending automatic contract roll-overs.

Last year Caroline Lucas presented a Bill to limit energy contract rollovers for small businesses to 30 days.   This year, she tabled an amendment to the Energy Bill to the same effect.

She has now written to EDF, EON*, NPower, Scottish Power, and SSE urging them to follow the lead of British Gas, which last month announced it will no longer sell businesses products that automatically commit them to further fixed term contracts.  Yesterday, npower also announced that it would stop offering rollover contracts to new business customers.

Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, said:

“Like people across the country, small businesses are struggling with rising energy prices.

“Companies in Brighton and Hove are rightly angry that they are often locked into contracts with big price hikes.  The fact that two of the Big Six energy companies are ending this unfair practice leaves the rest with nowhere to hide.   

 “The big picture is that Ofgem should be doing more to protect small businesses.   The fact that we are relying on the big six energy companies to take voluntary action shows that we need a far stronger regulatory system.”

  *EON has called for an industry-wide approach to end rollover contracts.