Introducing rdswitch.com the new energy switching service from Reader’s Digest

Reader’s Digest, one of the UK’s most trusted brands, has launched a new energy switching service called RDswitch.com. In a credit crunch climate, and with many facing a New Year of financial hardship, customers are reporting high utility bills and need a fast and cheap solution. As fuel bills rise, it is vital to find the best deal for gas and electricity.

RDswitch.com is the answer; a quick and simple site to use which offers customers an average saving per annum per household of £233. Gwen P comments, “It was quite an eye opener! It was quick and straightforward and we were amazed at the savings we could make – and will no doubt switch.”

RDswitch.com searches for the best prices and can take in to account service levels, green energy and loyalty schemes. With thousands of tariff and payment options the customer can be assured RDswitch.com will find the best tariff. The site also guides the customer through all the payment options available and clearly points out any benefits that certain methods of payment may attract. Howard T comments, “RDswitch.com allows you to access in minutes all the information you need to make an informed decision. I particularly like how you can compare the features and benefits of each supplier, and how you can prioritise your search according to what you need from a supplier.”

Winter Energy-Saving Tips

Tip 1 – Lighten Up Your Energy Bill with Fluorescent Lamps

If you replace 25% of your lights in high-use areas with fluorescents, you can save about 50% on your lighting energy bill. Although fluorescent lamps are more expensive than incandescents, they more than pay for themselves – lasting 6 to 10 times longer and saving energy to boot.

Tip 2 – Cut Your Costs on Water Heating

Water heating is a home’s third largest energy expense after heating/cooling and appliances. Use less water by repairing leaky taps promptly and installing non-aerating, low-flow taps and showerheads. Turn your thermostat down by 1 degree and you could save £65 a year.

Tip 3 – Cook Up Savings in the Kitchen

Use a kettle to boil water; it’s faster and uses less energy. If you cook with electricity, turn the oven and stovetop burners off several minutes before the allotted cooking time – the heating element will stay hot long enough to finish the cooking. Use pressure cookers and microwave ovens to significantly reduce cooking time.

Tip 4 – Reduce Energy Costs While Doing the Laundry

About 80-85% of the energy used for washing clothes goes toward heating the water. You can reduce this cost by washing full loads, which results in using less water overall. Also use cooler water – switching the temperature setting from hot to warm cuts a load’s energy use in half.

Tip 5 – Save Money without Sacrificing Comfort

You can save as much as 10% a year on your heating bills by simply turning down your thermostat 10% to 15% for 8 hours. You can do this automatically without sacrificing comfort by installing an automatic setback or programmable thermostat.

Extracted from www.rd.com

-ends-

Notes to editors

• Chris Spratling, CEO of Reader’s Digest is available for interview. Please contact Colman Getty

• Switch with Which? is the online switching service from Which?, the UK’s Consumer Association, an organisation with 50 years experience providing expert and independent advice to customers, Which? launched the service to provide customers with a transparent and impartial view of all current gas and electricity tariff options

• RDswitch.com has agreements in place with the following energy suppliers: EDF Energy, E.ON, Good Energy, Green Energy UK, npower, Scottish Hydro-electric, Scottish Power, Southern Electric, SWALEC, The Utility Warehouse and Union Energy

• The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc. is a global publisher and direct marketer of books, magazines, music collections and video with customers in more than 70 countries. Reader’s Digest is the world’s most widely read magazine and is published in 50 editions in 21 languages

For more information about Reader’s Digest
please contact Hannah Blake or Kirsten Dennis at Colman Getty
T 020 7631 2666

E hannah@colmangetty.co.uk

Case studies that have tested RDswitch.com

Family

Sophie R and her husband live in a three bedroom maisonette in East London and have two children under three. Their current electricity and gas supplier is EDF. They pay £528 per annum for electricity and £576 per annum for gas. Sophie got her bill last week and thought “that’s ridiculous” so jumped on RDswitch.com to see if she could make some savings, “it was very simple to use and the savings looked impressive”. Sophie found that she could switch to NPower and save £116 per annum.

Sophie says about the site: “Each page was simple to use and self-explanatory. It was interesting as it also threw up suppliers that I hadn’t even heard of before so in a competitive market it’s good to know that these companies exist and what deals they are offering.”

Retired couple

71-year-old Gwen P lives with her husband in East Sussex, in a three bedroom house built in the 1880s. They currently have both their electricity and gas supplied by EDF and pay £440 per quarter. Gwen found that by using RDswitch.com, they could save £290 per year by switching to British Gas.

“It was quite an eye opener! It was quick and straightforward and we were amazed at the savings we could make – and will no doubt switch.”

Young Couple

Howard T and his girlfriend live in a one bedroom flat in South London. They currently receive both gas and electricity from EDF Energy and are on a green dual fuel tariff. They pay £30 per month via direct debit for both gas and electricity. Howard’s monthly direct debit has recently been reduced by his supplier so he was keen to see if rdswitch.com could find him “something even better” than his “competitive existing rate”. Howard was pleased to find that he was on the most affordable green tariff. However, he was intrigued to see that NPower could save him £48.73 per annum if he was prepared to switch to a normal tariff.

“I always believed that finding the best rate and potentially changing suppliers involved a lot of time and energy, for very little reward. However, this new site allows you to access in minutes all the information you need to make an informed decision. I particularly like how you can compare the features and benefits of each supplier, and how you can prioritise your search according to what you need from a supplier.”

Flat Share

Susannah P, aged 25, lives in South London as part of a house share with three other young professionals in a four bedroom, mid terrace house. At present they are on a standard duel fuel tariff with British Gas set up by their landlord and currently pay roughly £556 per annum (£400 Gas, £156 Electric) on their energy bills. Using RDswitch.com, Susannah discovered that she could be paying around £412.59 per annum on a similar tariff, and making a significant saving of £143.41 with Equipower.

“I hadn’t really considered changing tariffs because I’d just assumed it would be a really time consuming process. RDSwitch.com was really clear and easy to use, and I was able to find a better deal within seconds. I was surprised to see how much I could save and how easy it is to change – I will definitely consider changing supplier.”