Electricity prices are falling and more people are switching
Mark Whelan
Staff Writer

The CER has revealed that nearly 80,000 electricity customers switched suppliers to save money in the first three months of 2015. But should that number be higher?

In May, it was revealed that Irish people are doing pretty well when it comes to energy supplier switching. In fact, we were number two in the EU for electricity switching in 2015 and in the top spot for gas.

We weren’t surprised to see these figures here at bonkers.ie HQ.

After all, competition has been increasing, prices have been falling and Irish people are too smart to be paying more than they have to…right? Right?! More on that later…

There was some more positive news today as the CER revealed that electricity switching has increased again.

Nearly 80,000 people took the few minutes required to ditch those expensive standard rates and take advantage of the savings to be had by switching between 2015 and 2016.

Electricity switching increasing

The exact number of electricity customers who switched suppliers between January and March this year was 79,380, which is a 1.2% increase on the same period in 2015. The busiest month for switching was February of this year, with an impressive 28,684 people making the decision to stop overpaying.

Bord Gáis Energy was the biggest beneficiary of Ireland’s strong electricity switching behaviour with over 50,000 electricity customers signing up with the supplier between 2015 and 2016, representing a 1.71% market share increase.

Bord Gáis Energy just announced a range of new back-to-school discounts too and will be hoping that these help keep the customer increases coming.

Energia was a close second behind Bord Gáis Energy, adding 11,000 customers in the same period, and increasing its share of the market by 1.32%.

The supplier has consistently offered competitive discounts, and they seem to be working!

Prices are falling

In the second half of last year, electricity prices fell by 3.2% nationally, thanks to increased competition and falling wholesale prices.

There are now seven electricity suppliers in the market, who are showing a appetite for price wars and price under-cutting, which is all good news for customers of course. Well, for those who take the time to switch.

Another driving factor behind the price reductions is the falling wholesale price of electricity, which is down 27% on last year. And most suppliers are passing their savings on to new customers in the form of sign-up discounts. So, another reason to switch!

The biggest price cuts in the first three months of this year came from SSE Airtricity, which reduced prices by 5%; Electric Ireland, which cut prices by 6% and PrePayPower, which knocked 4.1% off its standard unit rate.

But customers switching suppliers were able to save up to 26% by availing of new customers discounts.

Should switching figures be higher?

Despite the good switching news, more people should be doing it!

Last year, 86% of Ireland’s electricity customers didn’t switch suppliers and 84% didn’t switch gas. Customers who don’t switch in more than a 12-month period are almost certainly paying more than they have to, and there’s up to €360 to be saved by switching gas and electricity today. That money is better off in your pocket than your supplier’s!

Switch now

If you’re one of the 86% of electricity customers that are still overpaying, why not take the few minutes needed to switch suppliers now?

There are three suppliers offering discounts of 20% or more and there is no reason to be paying more than you have to.

Visit our Compare and Switch Gas & Electricity Prices page to save now.