EnergyBillKill, the UK’s first business energy switching app and sustainability-as-a-service platform, releases the results of a survey conducted by Censuswide on 500 UK small businesses in the private sector.

In light of the current economic times, combined with environmental concerns, EnergyBillKill commissioned this research to understand business views on business energy cost savings, ease of switching, adopting green energy and attitudes towards the energy sector.

The survey reveals the majority of SMEs find switching painful, a significant number have trust issues with energy companies and energy brokers, and that using renewable energy is a commercial imperative.

Key findings to note:

Switching energy providers is more challenging than tooth extraction
51% of SMEs consider the process of switching energy to be more challenging than tooth extraction, firing people, running a marathon, climbing a mountain, implementing pay cuts or moving house.

Large numbers do not trust energy companies and/or energy brokers
35% of the SMEs surveyed hesitate to switch energy providers because they believe energy companies will overcharge them.
26% are reluctant to switch energy providers because they don’t trust brokers.

Using renewable/green energy is a commercial imperative for SMEs
70% of respondents care about green energy and believe that within 10 years customers will not give business to 'non-green' energy suppliers.
42% of them also believe that this customer behaviour will change as early as the next 5 years.
43% of respondents feel that switching to green energy may be too costly or don’t know where to start.


Michael Rossman,Co-Founder at EnergyBillKill.com comments:

“We know that many UK businesses pay too much for utilities. Energy prices are significantly down. Still, more than 50% of SMEs never shop around for a better deal. Most businesses we talk to are keen to be green, yet little data exists to show that being green is not just a choice, but a commercial necessity. We hired Censuswide to conduct a national survey to find out if this is true for businesses nationwide.

The energy market is complex. There is a lack of transparency on pricing. Switching can be daunting and confusing for small business owners. As more SMEs are looking into green energy, we want to empower them to easily switch. For those SMEs that are still in a fixed deal, we have launched a single click carbon offset tool.”

Amongst the respondents, 95% were micro businesses (0-9 employees), 4% were small businesses (10-40 employees), and 1% were medium businesses (50-249 employees).

An in-depth analysis of the survey results can be found on the EnergyBillKill website: www.energybillkill.com/survey

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Note to the editors:
Media Contacts for EnergyBillKill:
Madalina Grigorie, OMG Partners
[email protected]

About EnergyBillKill.com
EnergyBillKill.com is a business gas and electricity switching and comparison service. As the UK's first business energy switching app and carbon offset tool, our mission is to make life easier for businesses. We do not charge hidden broker fees and make all costs transparent, so businesses who use our apps get the lowest prices and can easily switch business energy providers. EnergyBillKill.com abides by Ofgem’s voluntary code of principles.

More information at www.energybillkill.com

About the research
The research was conducted by Censuswide with 500 SME owners in UK companies in the private sector that face utility bills including: Micro (0-9 employees) 95%, Small (10-40 employees) 4%, Medium (50-249 employees) 1%. For microbusinesses the owner qualifies if they meet one of the following criteria: a. Fewer than 10 employees (or their FTE) and an annual turnover or balance sheet no greater than €2 million – they also have to face utility bills as a business b. Using no more than 100,000kWh of electricity per year or using no more than 293,000kWh of gas per year. The research fieldwork took place in the UK between 07.02.2020-13.02.2020. Censuswide abide by and emp