SMEA supporting Harcus Parker legal action against energy companies.
February 2023
The SME Alliance exists to support companies that have fallen victim to misconduct and, crucially, where they are being failed by regulatory or other official sources of support or protection.
We believe that the manner in which SMEs have been treated by the energy industry, the hidden commissions on their bills, the unscrupulous way in which brokers have taken advantage of the lack of regulatory protection, falls squarely into this bracket. What is all too familiar about this scandal is that industry insiders have known for years about the problems in the industry. None of this will come as any surprise to the energy companies, the brokers and, sadly the regulator.
While some limited steps have been taken recently tighten up on how brokers operate, this is much too little, much too late. SMEs, public sector organisations such as schools, and community groups are never going to have the knowledge and skills to navigate a market that has proved to be working against their interests. They need support in the form of proper regulation. This is why we are supporting the Harcus Parker legal action against the energy companies, but it is also why we are calling for regulation in the energy market to be extended beyond consumers to the corporate sector, particularly for SMEs and community or public sector. The energy giants have proven themselves incapable of playing by the rules. The only answer then is to have the rules imposed on them.
We believe that the manner in which SMEs have been treated by the energy industry, the hidden commissions on their bills, the unscrupulous way in which brokers have taken advantage of the lack of regulatory protection, falls squarely into this bracket. What is all too familiar about this scandal is that industry insiders have known for years about the problems in the industry. None of this will come as any surprise to the energy companies, the brokers and, sadly the regulator.
While some limited steps have been taken recently tighten up on how brokers operate, this is much too little, much too late. SMEs, public sector organisations such as schools, and community groups are never going to have the knowledge and skills to navigate a market that has proved to be working against their interests. They need support in the form of proper regulation. This is why we are supporting the Harcus Parker legal action against the energy companies, but it is also why we are calling for regulation in the energy market to be extended beyond consumers to the corporate sector, particularly for SMEs and community or public sector. The energy giants have proven themselves incapable of playing by the rules. The only answer then is to have the rules imposed on them.
