Energy price comparison sites should compensate customers who were not given the cheapest deals, MPs have said.
Sites have previously been criticised for not showing the cheapest tariffs, or details of commission they earn. Now, the Commons Energy and Climate Change Committee says "duped" customers should get some money back. Mark Todd, of energy switching company Energy Helpline, claimed that forcing comparison sites to show all tariffs could "unravel" the industry. Last year, the websites were accused of using a mechanism that asked consumers if they wanted to switch gas and electricity suppliers immediately. By clicking "yes" to that question, all the deals that did not earn the company a commission were filtered out. Only if a consumer clicked "no" were they shown other deals, which could be cheaper. Rates of commission earned by the different websites from suppliers varied from £22 to £30 for a single switch, or £44 to £60 for a "duel fuel" if a customer switched both gas and electricity supplier, the report said.....Read more here