Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The Centre for Competition Policy: Energy Consumer Survey, 2011 gathered household survey data focusing on searching and switching behaviour in the energy market. The survey was designed and commissioned to explore further some of the issues which had emerged from the Centre for Competition Policy (CCP) 2005 energy consumer survey across markets (see SN 7917). The 2011 survey was restricted to a single market (electricity supply), both to enable greater depth of questioning in that one market (which has been the subject of a number of other studies conducted at CCP) and to reduce the burden on respondents.

Main Topics:

Information was collected on expectations about potential gains from switching electricity suppliers and the time it would take to search and switch. Respondents were asked whether they had changed other similar regulated relationship products (where the default is to continue with the same supplier), partly for comparison with earlier CCP surveys. In addition, information on attitudes to markets and consumption in other markets is also included, along with data on respondents' socio-economic characteristics.

Quota sample

Face-to-face interview