Aggregator Sites Concealing Cheap Deals

As consumers we have become extremely reliant on price comparison sites, also known as aggregator websites. Claiming to offer themselves as a comparing tool, putting forth the cheapest prices in the industry, we feel supported by such sites, feeling that we are saving both time and money. There are five large sites of this nature, and between them they have lorded the price comparison industry of late. Offering a hassle-free and competitive service we have never questioned their ethics, trusting these sites to help us with our car insurance, home cover and energy deals. In a new study The Big Deal has accused the five firms of misleading their customers, not putting forth the best deals for energy that they are in reach of. It has vbeen discovered that the big five switching firms filter out energy tariffs that do not pay commission. Confused said customers could see every available tariff on its website, and it was committed to transparency. "Some suppliers do not make certain tariffs available through comparison sites, so we give customers the option to exclude these from the results," explained Kate Rose, head of energy at Confused. Angela Knight, chief executive of Energy UK (representing energy suppliers) said: “Comparison sites should not benefit from limiting options to customers. “Not disclosing commission and not advertising the full array of deals on offer undermines the industry’s work to be more up front with customers. The energy industry is committed to transparency and we expect others in the energy supply chain to do the same.” It does seem that there are some conflicting opinions on this matter but what do you think? Let us know your thoughts, would you still use a comparison site?