Consumers enjoying the benefits of switching

It seems that consumers in the UK are starting to realize just how much they could save by swapping over their finances and services to better deals, and according to research many more people are now making the switch in order to save money on everything from credit cards and loans to utilities and telephone. According to monitoring carried out by Moneyexpert, around fifty percent of adult consumers in the UK have switched various services in the past six months.

Amongst some of the most popular switches were credit cards and insurance, although gas and electric service providers topped the poll, which comes as no surprise after some of the major players in this field enforced massive rises last year, leaving consumers really feeling the pinch when trying to pay their energy bills. Around forty million switches have been made on various products in the latter part of 2006 according to the research.

Around fourteen percent of consumers have switched credit cards and car insurance in order to get a better deal over the past six months or so. The rise in the number of switches being made seems to indicate that consumers in the UK are becoming more savvy about how they can make savings simply by making a switch, as well as indicating a lower level of consumer apathy.

Sean Gardner, chief executive of MoneyExpert.com, stated: "No provider is safe from the axe if they don’t have a competitive product or good customer service. Customers aren't shirking from moving on if they're not happy. That is no truer than with utilities, where customers have been switching in their droves to ensure they keep rising costs down as much as possible."

Consumers are finding it increasingly easy to switch providers for finances and services thanks to a range of comparison services that enable them to find the cheapest option with ease and speed.

Tom Smith
30th January 2007