Kiwis shop around for cheap power

People have started shopping around for electricity suppliers since a campaign to promote competition in the sector, the Electricity Authority says.

The What's My Number Campaign has seen a 47 per cent increase in the number of people switching electricity suppliers, two months after its launch.

The Daily Post published an article about the campaign in July (click here) telling readers they could save hundreds of dollars by switching power companies.

The Electricity Authority launched the nationwide programme to help householders reduce their power bills by shopping around for the best prices on offer.

The "What's My Number" campaign is an initiative of the authority working with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Consumer NZ to help people make more informed choices about their electricity suppliers.

On the campaign website www.whatsmynumber.org.nz consumers can identify savings on their power bills by switching supplier.

They can then be diverted to Consumer New Zealand's website to initiate a switch.

The campaign, conducted by the Electricity Authority in partnership with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Consumer New Zealand, was launched after a survey found only five per cent of eligible New Zealanders were actively looking to switching electricity supplier, while 50 per cent said they would switch if offered a better deal. In June and July, 359,756 people visited the website and 86,225 changed their supplier.

Electricity Authority chief executive Carl Hansen said as a result of the campaign several suppliers were offering consumers better deals and service.

"A primary objective of the campaign was to increase competition in the market place so it's excellent to see evidence of that," he said. NZPA