Why the car insurance industry faces a difficult future June 12, 2014 The Competition and Market Authority's (CMA) proposed plans for change in the private motor insurance market aim to increase competition and reduce the cost of premiums for motorists. If implemented, they stand to do just that. This is great news for customers, but what does this mean for an industry that is already exceptionally competitive, [...]
Competition watchdog demands comparison site for payday loans June 11, 2014 PAYDAY borrowers would be treated fairly only when they could properly compare loans, the Competition and Markets Authority said yesterday. The sector already displays a range of prices and varied quality of service, the CMA’s probe found, but it said competition was not working properly at the moment. Without such a move, the average borrower [...]
Letters to the Editor – 12/06 – Simpler energy, Best of Twitter June 11, 2014 Simpler energy [Re: A bureaucratic nightmare, Tuesday] Stephen Littlechild overlooks the importance of Ofgem’s reforms to make the energy market simpler, clearer and fairer for consumers. Consumers told us they found the market confusing and that the number of tariffs on offer put them off shopping around. We have placed a limit of four core [...]
A bureaucratic nightmare risks stifling innovation in Britain’s energy market June 9, 2014 OFGEM’s chickens are coming home to roost, and the energy market regulator now faces a choice. It must decide whether it really is sensible to enforce the restrictions on energy suppliers it has spent the last few years formulating, or whether it will change course, given the bureaucratic nightmare and damage to market innovation that [...]
Smaller firms unhappy with energy sector May 22, 2014 THREE quarters of small businesses do not think there is enough competition in the energy market, while two thirds think it is difficult to switch supplier, according to a study by the Federation of Small Businesses published yesterday. The industry body surveyed over 1,400 of its members to get their view of the energy market, [...]
Eurotunnel’s ferries are set to be banned from crossing the Channel May 20, 2014 EUROTUNNEL’S ferry service is heading for the rocks after the British competition watchdog said the firm controls too much of the cross-Channel travel market. The Competition and Markets Authority said it intends to uphold an earlier ruling that will force Eurotunnel to halt its MyFerryLink services within six months. Eurotunnel said the market has undergone [...]
MPs quiz Ofgem boss on energy competition and prices May 13, 2014 Ofgem’s chief executive Dermot Nolan faced a grilling from a committee of MPs earlier today, who questioned the timing of – and motivation behind – the regulator’s decision to refer competition in the retail energy market to the Competition and Markets Authority in March. Nolan – who joked that he was “a masochist” for taking [...]
Market authority set to greenlight Sky Europe deal May 11, 2014 THE UK’s newly established Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) yesterday said it would likely greenlight a deal by Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox to consolidate its pay-TV European holdings were it to be approved by the EC. In 2010, European authorities approved News Corp’s bid to take full control of BSkyB. Murdoch is said to [...]
We’re resetting the energy market to make it simpler and smarter April 16, 2014 WHEN energy consumers open the next bill, letter or email from their supplier, they should notice some major changes. On every energy bill, they will now receive personalised information about the cheapest tariff their supplier can offer. They will also receive an accurate projection of how much they will pay if they stay on their [...]
Complaints about energy companies surge by 224pc April 7, 2014 The bad news just keeps on coming for Britain's energy companies. The number of complaints about energy providers has surged by 224 per cent for the first three months of 2014, according to the sector's ombudsman. Complaints from distressed customers rose from 3,277 for the first three months of 2013 to 10,628 for the same [...]