With VAT and taxes set to rise, it is a gloomy time for the British public. When it is then announced that British Gas have almost doubled their profits in the first half of 2010 and have no plans to reduce energy prices, it is unsurprising that there have been a significant number of angry consumers.
In the first six months of 2010 it has been reported that pre-tax profits have increased by 98% since last year. We experienced the coldest winter in 30 years which meant that energy use rose by 8%. British Gas benefited from larger profit margins due to energy costs being lower.
As well as dealing with increased VAT and taxes, people have now also been warned that their utility payments will also be higher. Although British Gas have said that they will do what they can do maintain lower prices for their customers, with energy costs set to increase in the second half of the year they may well be charging more. They have defended this by reiterating that they were the first energy company to offer lower prices in February 2010 and that this attracted 223,000 new customers resulting in such high profits.