Door reopens for Greater Manchester energy saving scheme (From Messenger Newspapers)

Door reopens for Greater Manchester energy saving scheme

11:03am Friday 8th March 2013 in News

RESIDENTS who missed out on their chance to take their share of a £3m energy savings scheme are being given another opportunity to get better deals.

More than 35,000 people signed up to for the GM Fair Energy scheme when it was launched in January - more than applied to join any other energy switching project of its kind in the country - and offers have been sent out to residents over the past few weeks.

People across Greater Manchester saved a total of £3m across their bills with some slashing their bills by up to £900 a year.

Some people who applied for the scheme were not offered discounts as they were already on cheaper tariffs, but the huge number of people who registered meant that larger savings were available for most households.

Now, those who missed out have a second chance as the second scheme has opened this week.

Those who register for the scheme, led by Greater Manchester councils, will be placed into a 'reverse auction' and will be offered new energy deals which they can either accept or reject.

Although it was targeted directly at people living in Greater Manchester, the scheme will be open to anyone in the UK to join and unlike many other schemes, will be open to people on pre-payment meters.

Barbara Sharp from Sale, who made a saving of nearly £300 through the January scheme, said: "I'd be reluctant to change supplies on my own because of the hassle of doing so, and yet a saving of more than £290 a year will make an enormous difference to me.

"I'd recommend this to anyone, particularly when it's as a group offer like this which makes it much easier to change and also provides some reassurance that it's something you can trust."

Executive councillor Alan Mitchell said: "I would encourage residents to sign up to this scheme, which is easy to do yet can make a big difference to the household's energy bills.

"There is no obligation to accept the final offer so you don't have anything to lose by taking part."

Anyone interested in being urged to register by visiting www.gmfairenergy.com or calling 0800 009 3363 before April 8.