Stephen Lewis checks out how you can make real savings on your gas bill

PSST! Don't forget to tell Sid.

Consumers fed up with British Gas's second big price rise in ten months are being urged to switch to other suppliers.

Which? magazine estimates the average household could save up to £60 a year by changing to another gas supplier - and that most people stay with British Gas simply because they can't be bothered switching.

Now, in a hard-hitting new campaign backed by independent gas and electricity consumer watchdog energywatch, the magazine is urging British Gas's 13.5 million customers to switch to a cheaper supplier.

It says that since gas deregulation in 1998 - which opened up the gas supply market to competition - switching suppliers has actually been a lot easier than most householders realise. It has set up a special website - www.switchwithwhich.co.uk - to help people do just that.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday night's edition of BBC 1's Watchdog programme, energywatch revealed the results of a survey which it claims show up to 2.7 million customers are set to desert British Gas because of the price increases.

British Gas put up its prices by 5.3 per cent on January 3, this year. That was on top of a 4.7 per cent increase in April last year - meaning that the company's prices have risen by ten per cent in only ten months.

The rise led to former Watchdog presenter Anne Robinson, who is chair of energywatch, branding the company "greedy" on Tuesday night's edition of the programme.

British Gas today defended its prices, pointing out that gas prices have increased significantly and stressing the quality of service the company provided.

Managing director Mark Clare said it wasn't just about providing the cheapest gas, but also about quality of service.

Nevertheless, he said, the company had put off the price increase as long as possible. "But we have to reflect the fact that the costs of gas to us have increased significantly and, regrettably, we've had to pass on part of that increase to our customers."

A spokesman for official gas regulator Ofgem, however, said its message was essentially the same as Which? "We have been encouraging people to switch ever since competition started," he said. "Most people can save money if they switch away from British Gas."

How to switch...

Which? says that despite British Gas being the second most expensive supplier in the country, 70 per cent of households still use the company.

The Which? website - www.switchwithwhich.co.uk - dedicated to helping people change supplier, should make it easy to move. It includes free Which? Reports, giving tips on how to find the best deal, how to avoid the pitfalls and a case study of a family which made the switch.

There is also a list of Ofgem-approved websites with up-to-date tariff information which can help you compare gas suppliers company by company to find the best one for you. They include www.unravelit.com, www.uswatch.com, www.saveonyourbills.co.uk and www.buy.co.uk/which.

Visit www.energywatch.org.uk or www.ofgem.gov.uk. Energywatch also has a freephone helpline number, 0800 887777.

Which? stresses that if you do want to switch suppliers, it's best for you to take the initiative. I decided to see for myself how much I could save on my gas bills by using one of the Which? recommended websites.

At present, I use British Gas. My bill for last year, after VAT and taking account of prompt payment discounts, came to £390.01, paid quarterly in arrears by cheque.

I logged on to www.unravelit.com to see how much I could save. The easy-to-follow website led me simply and easily through a series of questions about how much my annual gas bill was, how I paid, and where I lived. I chose the option of switching to payments by direct debit and the website suggested five companies, all offering substantial savings. One, an Internet account with Amerada.co.uk, offered me estimated savings of £89.97 a year.

There was even a button to make it easy to apply online. I just may use it.

Updated: 09:24 Thursday, January 10, 2002