British Gas – an overview

British Gas supplies gas and electricity to more homes in England, Scotland and Wales than any other provider, giving some clout to their claim to be ‘the nation’s leading energy supplier’. The company is also one of the biggest suppliers of central heating boilers and maintenance services in the UK with a large network of installers and engineers working right across Britain. They have a strong social responsibility programme and work closely with schools across the country to promote the reduction of carbon emissions through projects like Generation Green and Green Streets. They are planning on investing £1.5 billion in renewable energy for the future and have also implemented the changes needed to ensure a proportion of their current electricity supply comes from renewable sources.

British Gas offers an excellent range of tariffs, which means you can choose a price plan and payment options depending on your personal needs or preferences. The most popular of these is the Flexible tariff which offers a range of different ways to pay and comes with lots of optional extras and no cancellation fee.  The Green tariff is geared towards people who want to get their electricity from a renewable source. It comes with a free energy saving device and when you sign up the company will donate £10 on your behalf to a community energy fund. The Online tariff offers the cheapest rates available but you must agree to manage your account online and there is a cancellation fee if you decide to switch. You’ll also need to pay your bills via monthly Direct Debit which doesn’t suit everyone. The Fixed tariff is designed for people who don’t like surprises and want to pay a set amount for their energy. The current Fixed Price Promise sets prices up until March 2013. And finally, the Pre-paid option allows you to manage your budget by paying for your energy as and when you use it. This is a good option if you’re worried about bills piling up and feel you would be better off paying up-front. You get a free top-up device and you can use it to top-up your account online or at your local shop.

One of the best money saving tools offered by British Gas is their Energy Smart™ plan which lets you monitor the energy you use and find out how your habits are impacting on your bill. For example, if you’re a frequent tea or coffee drinker, you can find out how much it costs you every time you boil the kettle. And if you’re trying to persuade the family to take showers rather than baths, you can show them just how much money they would save by doing so. By tracking and monitoring your usage over time, you can reduce your bills and save up to £125 a year.

If you need a new boiler or are getting one installed for the first time, British Gas offer fixed price quotes for installation. This means that even if the installation is a bit more complicated than your engineer had anticipated, you don’t pay any more than the price quoted. They also offer flexible payment terms to allow you to spread the cost of the boiler itself over 1 to 10 years.