Over 4,200 people took part in the Merseyside Collective Switch which has saved local residents a total of £205,000 on their energy bills.

Those who switched saved an average of £212 a year. The highest saving was £933, and a significant number of people were able to save over £500 a year.

The Switch Together, Save Together scheme was organised by local charity, Energy Projects Plus, together with the six Merseyside local authorities. It worked by inviting people to register their interest in the scheme, then using collective buying power to negotiate cheaper tariffs from energy suppliers.

Special tariffs were offered by British Gas, Npower and Scottish Power, and included the cheapest fixed British Gas tariff which protects against any price rises until June 2015. These tariffs were only available through the scheme for a limited time. Householders were also able to switch to other existing tariffs through the scheme.

Ellie Abernethy, Project Manager at Energy Projects Plus said, “We are really pleased with the results of the collective switch. It’s great that so many people took part and are making such significant savings at a time when household budgets are under increasing pressure. The £205,000 total savings is money put back into the local economy, so it’s a good thing for Merseyside too”.

Energy Projects Plus and the six partnering local authorities will be running another Collective Switch later in the year.

In the meantime, householders can still explore how much they could save by switching by visiting www.LCRenergyswitch.co.uk or calling the Save Energy Advice Line on 0800 043 0151.