The Government Could Slash Your Power Bill by Up to $750
Australian energy bills are at an all-time high and they’ve become the number one political issue in the country. A new 400-page report from consumer watchdog the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has recommended 56 changes to the Australian energy market that they say could save Aussie homes up to $750 on their annual bill.
We read the report so you didn’t have to and here are 5 things you need to know.
- Loyalty doesn’t pay Switchers benefit most from the current energy market, rather than those who stay loyal to a provider, the ACCC says.
- It’s too hard to compare Energy offers, but that could change You’re not alone if you find it hard to compare all those rates and discounts and work out which offer is cheapest. The ACCC agrees.
- You need to look at both the discount AND the rates Even if the government enacts all the ACCC’s recommendations, it will take months not weeks, so in the meantime you need to keep looking at both rates and discounts when comparing.
- ‘Pay-on-time’ discounts could become a thing of the past These are great if you’re an on-time payer and they can be as high as 30% or even 40% in some cases, but they can act as a penalty for late payers who miss out on the discount and end up paying the full amount.
- Reforms could save households $500 to $750 per annum If governments follow through and accept all the ACCC’s recommendations, the watchdog claims they could save us $500 to $750 per annum (25-35 per cent) per household.
“Similarly, small and medium businesses could save $1450-$2250 (30-35 per cent) per year by moving to a standard ‘default’ offer. Currently over 20 per cent of small businesses are on high ‘standing’ offers.”
Estimated electricity bill savings
|
VIC |
NSW |
SE QLD |
SA |
TAS |
||
|
Average residential customer |
$290 20% |
$410 24% |
$420 25% |
$370 21% |
$415 21% |
|
|
Average residential standing offer customer |
$500 30% |
$550 30% |
$500 25% |
$750 35% |
* | |
|
Average SME customer |
$600 20% |
$1050 25% |
$950 25% |
$800 20% |
* | |
|
Average SME standing offer customer |
$2000 35% |
$2250 35% |
$1450 30% |
$1500 30% |
* |
* As electricity prices are regulated in Tasmania there is no distinction for standing offer customers. Equivalent SME data to other states was not available for this analysis.
