British Gas lost 750,000 domestic customers in 2017.

I was one of them, we stuck with them for years because we simply couldn't be bothered to move for what seemed a very small saving (i imagine a lot of people also did this) but it became obvious they were taking the micky out of loyal customers so we moved onto a fixed price deal with another supplier, i wish we had done it a long time ago.


BBC - news -

Centrica, which owns British Gas, is cutting 4,000 jobs, after what its chief executive called a "weak" end to 2017.

Iain Conn said plans for a price cap in the UK was one reason for the job losses, just over half of which will be in the UK.

The energy supplier, which also operates in North America and Ireland, said group profits fell 17% to £1.25bn.

British Gas lost 750,000 domestic customers in 2017.

That amounts to a fall of about 9%, with the company now left with 7.8 million UK domestic customers.

'Intense' competition

Centrica said the job losses, which are part of an extended cost-cutting programme, would fall mainly in its UK energy supply business.

Investment in technology and the simplification of core business processes would result in cost savings of £1.25bn per year by 2020, the firm said. It also expects to create around 1,000 additional roles.

Mr Conn told the BBC the job losses were also due to "intense" competition and partly due to customers using more digital services.

But he said government plans to limit what firms can charge customers also played a part.

"There is a link between our cost efficiency programme and preparing for any price cap in the UK.

"We've got to be competitive and this measure means we've got to drive more efficiency."

Read more http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43152166

I used to work for them many years ago. Dreadful company managed by buffoons.

have they looked down the back of the CE's Sofa?

Chippy_Tea said:

I was one of them, we stuck with them for years because we simply couldn't be bothered to move for what seemed a very small saving (i imagine a lot of people also did this) but it became obvious they were taking the micky out of loyal customers so we moved onto a fixed price deal with another supplier, i wish we had done it a long time ago.

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Yeah me too. When they decided to hike their tariffs up at the back end of last year it was a case of enough is enough

They're just not competitive anymore and luckily more and more people are wising up to the fact that you can change energy providers pretty much whenever you like.

I've shopped around at renewal times for utilities and insurance for years and have probably saved quite a lot of £££s along the way. For a few minutes on the phone as it used to be, or on tinterweb like now it seems a good investment of my time.
BG have relied on many customers who couldn't be arsed to do this, but as others have said people are now waking up to the potential savings and that's whats hitting them in particular.
That said what I object to is interference at government level which artificially stifles competition and brings the different tariffs closer together so I end up subsidising someone who can't be bothered to shop around.
So in my my view its either free competition without restriction or everyone pays the same.