subject: Survey highlights energy management failings in UK Public Sector [print this page] Survey highlights energy management failings in UK Public Sector
TEAM, the UK's leading energy management solutions provider announced today that the UK Public Sector could be responsible for energy oversights amounting to a staggering 147 million.
TEAM, the largest outsourced Energy Bureau Service provider in the UK, identified in a recent survey of nearly 200,000 utility bills that billing errors are costing organisations hundreds of thousands of pounds a year.
The Survey found that on average, companies can recover 3.5% of their utility costs simply by checking and scrutinising their bills. TEAM's Managing Director, Paul Martin, commented:
"If we take just the public sector with an estimated utility bill of between 3.8 and 4.2 billion, a 3.5% saving could take around 147 million off the public sector deficit. That amounts to around 3,000 public sector jobs".
He went on to say:
"The public and private sectors could be throwing millions of pounds down the drain by not checking utility bills properly. Utility bills are a rich source of information but are complex and difficult to understand for most organisations. The first place to look for energy cost savings is the bills. Not only can organisations benefit from reducing ongoing costs, but they could also find a nice windfall from historical overcharging."
The survey identified that the worst culprits were the gas companies where 6.0% recoveries could be made then followed by water at 4.1% and electricity at 2.8%.
Viki Thurgood, TEAM Bureau Services Manager said:
"Consumers in general have been confused by energy companies' billing and the numerous tariffs. Many of them are totally unaware of the saving that companies like ours can make for them. A typical London Local Authority for instance could save 413,000 per year, and in times like today, this can make a real difference to the bottom line."
The survey article and results can be downloaded at www.teamenergy.com/2010/10/28/utility-billing-survey
* The survey was conducted using 193,603 utility invoices over a 12 months period in 2009 with both public and private sector organisations including. Central Government, Local Government, Police, Fire, Education, Health Authorities, Telecoms, Property Management, Rail, Housing Associations and Charities.
