Our expert advisors are used to handling questions about our Gas Buying Group. Below, we’ve tried to answer some of the questions that we get asked most often.
A gas buying group is an amalgamation of businesses with the purpose of negotiating cheaper gas prices through purchasing collectively. Approved group members team up to buy gas in greater volumes – at the best possible price.
To qualify for our larger buying group your business needs to use a minimum of 100,000kwh of gas per year. This can be split across multiple sites, as long as the total consumption of all sites is above 100,000kwh. We also have a smaller gas buying group for businesses that do not meet the 100,000kwh threshold.
If our offer to you is less than 7.5% cheaper than your current rate then you are under no obligation to accept, so there’s nothing to lose.
The buying group contract ends on the 30th September each year. However, if your existing contract with another supplier ends at any other time, we can offer you a short term contract that will expire at the send of September – so you can still enjoy the benefits of buying in bulk.
To join the Business Gas buying group just speak to one of our advisors on 0800 1577 175 and they will handle all of the admin work. Once you’re in, the day-to-day management of the contract is minimal.
Yes!
When you sign up we’ll give you a gas smart meter AND a full years daily online reporting AND a bill validation system – all for free!
AND the more we buy, the cheaper it gets!
If you’re interested in joining our buying group and making fantastic savings on yout business gas, call us now on 0800 157 7175!
As consumers, we operate in a marketplace driven by cost pressures. That is especially true at Christmas. Black Friday bore witness to the willingness in human beings to clamber all over one another, just to find a bargain. Equally, the relatively new online culture means we now let our fingers do the legwork (if you see what I mean), finding the best prices for whatever it is we’re looking to purchase.
A website such as Kelkoo will scout the market for the best prices for most electronic devices and that kind of aggregating of cost carries over into the business energy market… although not, of course, stretching to anything like the chaos of Black Friday. In a domestic context we are well versed in the art of ‘switching’ – of shopping around for the most competitive supplier of energy. The same is true of the business energy marketplace, although there are, perhaps, one or two extra things you need to bear in mind.
The bottom line is that gas suppliers are, themselves, a business, serving other businesses, and the prime motivator for everyone is to make money. Bearing that in mind, if you simply let your contract run down, and then renew, it is highly unlikely your supplier will be at all motivated to help you save money. It’s business. If they can make an extra 10 or 20% from your contract, they will do that.
The first thing, therefore, is always to push back and ask for a deal on rates. Even then, the supplier will look to offer you the best price they can get away with offering you. Many businesses will be happy with any kind of reduction, viewing it as a victory when, in reality they might have been able to push for much more. For example, if you’re paying 2.95 pence per kwh and negotiate 2.65p, you may well see that as a successful negotiation. In reality, the supplier may well have dropped to 2.35p per kwh… and still made money.
For many, however, such negotiations are labour intensive, requiring the kind of specialist knowledge they simply don’t possess. Equally, many businesses don’t have the time, and really need someone to take on the research, and negotiations, on their behalf. That’s where a broker like BusinessGas.com comes in.
When you contact one of our consultants you will, of course be looking for more competitive rates than you are currently on. But sometimes it’s not as simple as it may seem. For example, in a recent case one of our pricing team scoured the market on behalf of a client who used 518.941 Kwh of electricity per annum. One supplier offered a price of 3.986p per Kwh with no standing charge; another, 2.31p per Kwh but with a standing charge of £5.86 per day. At first glance the standing charge might, at face value, look prohibitive. However an expert in the market will be able to calculate that at that level of annual usage, the saving on the price per Kwh will actually still amount to £6,556.88 each year. And that can be a hefty amount to many businesses.
And that is why trusting the decision to BusinessGas.com means putting your business in the hands of the professionals, who know the sector, know the marketplace and can quickly do the sums.
And, in turn, that frees you up to spend time on other crucial aspects of your business… such as the finishing touches to the staff Christmas do! And with these savings, you can even keep the Christmas lights on…
Does your present gas contract end between December and May? If so, the chances are you will be renewing your gas contract in October or early next year – in other words, Winter.
Why is that significant? It’s still not common knowledge but if you negotiate your business gas contract in the colder months, you could be paying significantly more than if you negotiated in the summer months.
The weather can have a huge impact on gas prices. And it’s logical when you think about it. When you come in from work at night, unless it’s already on, the first thing you do is fire up the boiler. Likewise, first thing in the morning, we all like to wake up to a nice toasty house (if you’re anything like me, it’s tricky getting out of bed otherwise!) so the heating’s set to come on early. If you work from home, or are retired, the chances are its on for the majority of the day.
More importantly, if you’re a business, it could be on for very long periods, ensuring your workforce are comfortable and likewise your customers.