A delighted B&B owner has urged fellow business bosses not to rest on their laurels after successfully claiming back several thousands of pounds from an energy broker.
Malcolm Harrington, of popular bed and breakfast establishment No1 The Laurels, contacted Business Energy Claims (BEC) to establish whether it had been mis-sold to.
No1 The Laurels had been approached by the broker Energy Prices Direct, which offered to source the B&B a good deal on its energy and arranged two gas contracts on its behalf.
At no point did the broker disclose its commissions and an assessment from BEC – the UK’s leading organisation in tackling energy broker mis-selling – found that substantial commissions had been added.
BEC successfully ran the claim and recovered several thousands of pounds for the B&B, which is based in the picturesque village of Henfield in West Sussex.
Mr Harrington said: “We are delighted to have won the claim against our broker and recovered such a significant amount of money, especially in these challenging times for everyone in the industry.
“We had read an article about Business Energy Claims in a magazine and decided to reach out to them to see if we had a claim, and they did the rest on our behalf.
“While we were pleased to win the claim and recover the money, it was hugely disappointing to hear that commissions had been added without being disclosed to us, and highlights the need for businesses across the UK to get on top of this issue.
“We are massively grateful to the team at Business Energy Claims for all of the help they have provided and we would encourage companies across the country to get in touch with them and see if they have a claim.”
Hospitality facilities often spend considerable sums on their gas and electricity contacts and are therefore targeted by energy brokers which are able to benefit from higher commissions as a result of their high consumption.
Callum Thompson, managing director at Business Energy Claims, said: “We were delighted to be able to recover this money for Malcolm and his fantastic bed and breakfast.
“This is yet another example of a hard-working, family business being targeted and taken advantage of and we will continue to fight against such practices.
“We are sure that after what has been such a difficult year for everyone in the tourism and hospitality industries, this will be a very welcome bonus for Malcolm and No1 The Laurels, and we know there will be many other similar businesses across the UK which are entitled to claim money back in this way.
“This is a multi-billion pound issue affecting businesses throughout the country and we would urge any company which has used an energy broker to get in touch.
“If their fees were not disclosed to them, they may have a potential claim and could recover these sums. We look forward to helping many more businesses.”
Business Energy Claims would like to thank 3volution for their efforts in ensuring another successful win at trial.
To find out if your business has a business energy claim, please call our team on 0800 6894259, mail [email protected] or head over to our website to Calculate Your Claim.