What is your view on the doorstep utility salespeople?

Ofgem, the utility regulator, is today looking into growing complaints against doorstep utility salespeople amid concerns that some customers may not fully understand the consequences of a move from one supplier to another. A number of people have stepped forward to confirm that allegedly the deal they were "sold" by various salespeople was not the one which materialised when the bills started to flow.

This is just the latest in a number of negative headlines to hit the UK utility sector and comes only days after EDF announced an increase in electricity bills which will hit 1.2 million customers from October. There has been concern for many years that the UK government, both past and present, have allowed overseas conglomerates to snap up an array of UK utility companies with price increases often following.

However, again, as we have suggested on numerous occasions, the UK government in some ways had its hands tied behind its back because of the "free market" in which we operate and the fact that many UK companies have taken over overseas counterparts in the past. Why there have not been more UK conglomerates taking over UK utility companies is a bit of history especially if overseas competitors are able to make these deals pay.