In 2017 I signed an agreement with another broker, on the premise that they would find the best price gas/electricity contracts without my having to compare suppliers and brokers. For a while it worked, never the cheapest deal but reasonable enough. Until this broker merged with another broker (seeming without telling their customers) and the best deal for me became the highest commission for them.

At the worst point in the energy crisis, October 2022, this broker signed an extortionate gas contract supposedly on my behalf with British Gas Lite. They signed me in to a 3-year contract for my gas on 23.3p per kWh, a rate that was completely unaffordable. I knew Nationwide Energy Consultants through my landlords, Shepherd Neame. For various reasons, I hadn’t used them after moving in. Now, desperate for advice on how to deal with the situation, I reached out to them and was put in touch with Nicole.

Nicole confirmed that this broker had used a letter of authority I signed in 2017. She advised that usually, letters of authority are only valid for 12 months, but this broker had amended their terms to state that this letter of authority was valid until the point of the customer cancelling the agreement.

Luckily, we had a few months to argue this before the contract was due to go live. Nicole supported me in composing a complaint to this broker, as well as British Gas Lite, to argue that their terms were unfair and unjust. In the complaint, Nicole had requested the contract be cancelled without any penalty or fees and for the letter of authority to be terminated. After some back and forth, the broker agreed to apply a ‘Free 2 Go’ on the account which meant I was free to leave British Gas Lite and I had 30 days to do so.

Nicole gave me a range of contract options with different suppliers, and I agreed to a 1-year contract that was less than half the British Gas Lite rates. I am extremely happy with the outcome, being on a much cheaper rate has really helped my business. As I have agreed to a 12-month contract, this gives me a chance to see where the market is in 12 months’ time and potentially agree something even cheaper, an option I wouldn’t have had if I had stayed in a 3-year agreement via the other broker.

I can’t thank Nicole enough for the help she provided. The other broker only seemed to be doing what suited them regardless of its impact on me, whereas Nationwide Energy put me first.