Credit, collections & insolvency news
New data from Sidetrade has found that the UK and Ireland are among the top five worst in Europe for payment delays. The company statistics are based on the payment behaviour of 20.7 million buying companies worldwide. The data reveals the best and worst markets and industries for late payments over the last three years…
Read more
A study by energy analysts Cornwall Insight shows that SMEs have already seen average gas bills climb more than 250% between the first three months of 2021 and Q1 2022. Analysts looked at delivered gas prices businesses pay on a 1-year acquisition fixed tariff, calculating how much they may pay in future if energy prices…
Read more
New analysis by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has shown a £10,000 increase in small business utility bills ahead of Spring Statement. The analysis shows that electricity and gas bills will increase from £4,724.73 to £11,589.89 (+145%) and from £1,345.07 to £4,815.36 (+258%) respectively for a small business in London with commercial premises between…
Read more
The price cap for water retailers will rise by 0.49% for two years from April to cover bad debt costs incurred in the non-household market as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and national lockdowns. Ofwat has raised the uplift from the 0.31% increase proposed in December. Ofwat’s decision does not affect household customers. The…
Read more
Raman Bhatia, Chief Operating Officer of OVO has been appointed CEO of OVO’s retail business from 1st March 2022. Adrian Letts will be stepping down after three years of leading OVO through the acquisition of SSE Energy Services, the pandemic and the rise of gas prices. Bhatia has led the operations of OVO over the…
Read more
Tackling business customers’ concerns over the accuracy of their water bills should be a priority for the retail water market, if it is to reverse falling levels of satisfaction according to the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater). CCW says marked improvements in billing are still needed after its joint business customer insight survey with Ofwat revealed…
Read more
With the Treasury announcing support measures for households set to be hit by a spike in energy prices, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has urged officials to extend the support to small businesses. FSB National Chair Mike Cherry said “Many small businesses face many of the same challenges as consumers in the energy market,…
Read more
Water retailers will be required to return customers’ credit balances and make them aware of the risks associated with advanced payment schemes, in the event of a retailer failure, under new rules. Water regulator Ofwat approved the change to the non-household water retail code to add protections for business customers. The Consumer Council for Water (CCWater),…
Read more
Ofwat has finalised its decision which will see Thames Water pay over £11 million to 13,800 business customers and water retailers for errors in its data which led to customers being billed the wrong amount. In addition to the financial package, Thames Water has proposed a series of undertakings which, among others, include strengthening its…
Read more
The Consumer Council for Water (CCW) is calling for improvements to make life easier for customers already facing the immense challenge of running a business during Covid-19. New figures released by CCW show that written complaints from business customers to their supplier rose by 5 per cent during 2020-21. And despite a fall in the number…
Read more
A third of businesses have been forced to review their future plans after being severely impacted by Covid-19, according to the latest CCW research. CCW’s ‘Testing the Waters survey’ also found that less than a quarter of business customers could recall receiving information from their water retailer about the help and support available to them with…
Read more