In the UK the home utility market has been deregulated. This
allows home and business consumers to choose their energy, home
phone and broadband provider.
Gas
In 1986 British Gas, the only company providing gas to homes in
the UK, was privatised. This included the transporting of gas
around the UK's network, as well as delivering gas via pipelines
to domestic properties. This however was a monopoly and was
considered uncompetitive. Over the following years changes
where made to change the system. In 1990 large I&C customers
where allowed to choose their gas supplier. In 1992 All I&C
customers can select their gas supplier. In 1996 a pilot scheme
is launched to allow domestic gas customers in South West
England to choose their gas supplier. In 1997 British Gas
became the BG Group and Centrica. Transco is part of the BG
Group. In 1998 a pilot scheme was launched that allowed all
domestic customers to choose their gas supplier. In 2000 the BG
Group further split into Lattice. In 2002 Lattice merges with
the National Grid. Today there are many services that allow
gas prices
to be compared, to allow customers to get
cheap
gas.
Electricity
In 1990 the UK Electricity board was privatised. This allowed
a competitive market for customers requiring 1MW or more. In
1994 the 100KW market was deregulated. In 1997 compulsory
metering was introduced. In 1998 the domestic supply market was
deregulated. In 2000 domestic metering was open to
competition. Today there are many services that allow energy
and
electricity
prices to be compared to save money on household bills.
Home phone
The UK home phone market was deregulated in the 1990s. This
has left more than 170 providers of home telephone services.
Customers are able to choose their provider. Almost all
services are provided over the British Telecom network, who
still have a duty to provide a telephone line to every home
within the UK. It is not necessary to use BT as the service
provider. There are many services that allow one to
find
cheaper home phone calls.
Broadband
Since the introduction of broadband to the UK market many
broadband service providers have appeared. Currently there are
hundreds to choose from. Most of the broadband network is
installed and controlled by BT. This is necessary as BT is
responsible for providing telephone lines to UK homes. There
are many services that allow one to find the
best
broadband internet provider.
About the author:
Darren Lambert is a keen writer on home and energy related
subjects.
Get
cheap
gas,
cheaper
home phone calls and find the
best
broadband internet provider.
