Soaring energy prices leave UK comparison sites stranded
Sergei the meerkat and his rival Gio Compario have put comparison websites at the heart of many people’s buying decisions, but soaring energy price rises and new rules on insurance sales mean challenging times for the businesses they advertise.
At a time when consumers are keener than ever to cut bills, the websites have found themselves without any deals to offer on energy because sky-high wholesale prices mean that suppliers aren’t offering cheap tariffs.
The sites earn commission from companies when customers switch to them, thought to be about £30 for some energy contracts and £40- £50 for insurance policies.
On Thursday, one of the biggest, MoneySupermarket, reported a25% fall in profits last year, and said that revenues from home services, which include energy switching, were down 34%. The company said it was expecting zero revenue from its energy business in 2022.
GoCompare, one if its rivals, said that 2021 was a “year like no other” in the energy market. It paused that strand of its comparison service completely in September.
“At the moment, there aren’t any competitive deals available for people to compare but we are hopeful that we can offer this service again in the near future and get back to helping our customers save money on their energy bills,” a spokesperson said.
In October, USwitch made the unusual decision to advertise to customers that they should “stay put” with their current providers and stop using its energy service until further notice. “It’s something we never thought we’d say,” a statement from the company said at the time.
The comparison sites also face the challenge of new rules banning loyalty penalties on home and motor insurance.
The regulations, set by the Financial Conduct Authority came into
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