I hesitate to admit it, but I've been a victim. Yes, the very person who is now trying to convince you that you can make substantial savings by switching energy and telephone suppliers has actually been involved in the dark side of the business...purely as a victim you understand. One cold dark night a young girl hardly able to string 4 or 5 English words together knocked at my door and told me that by switching to her energy supplier my bills would automatically be reduced by 30%. I knew that it was rubbish, I'd already shopped around and switched to the best deal only months earlier. She was adamant that these savings were being offered. I told her to leave the documentation and that I would read it at my leisure. She asked me to sign a receipt to prove to her manager that she'd left the book....the rest, as they say, is history.

Reading her brochure it was obvious that her claims were totally unfounded. Inside the brochure it stated that it was impossible for energy supplies to be switched without the supplier getting confirmation from the client within 14 days of the original visit. There was no way that I'd be giving that confirmation, so that would be that. How wrong I was, within a week I had a letter from British Gas congratulating me on joining them. WHAT !!...I was on the phone within seconds.

For the next 6 months I spent countless hours on the phone or writing letters to British Gas. Each time I would get an apologetic person on the other end of the phone assuring me that it had all been sorted out, and that I would hear nothing more from them. Within a week I'd receive another phone call from their debt collection department. It was quite comical. They would say that there was an outstanding amount and when was I going to pay it. I'd say "never" and they'd go silent for a few seconds. Then we'd get into a long dialogue about what had happened and I'd get them to talk to their customer service department and they'd go away content. This was repeated countless times, I even had the same debt collector on my doorstep twice, even after he'd promised on his first visit that I would never see him again. The look on his face when I answered the door on the second occasion was a sight for sore eyes....he was so embarrassed when he recognised me. He went away vowing that he would personally sort it out, and touch wood he has,so thanks to the British Gas debt collector !!.

Tips to surviving doorstep / high street / phone selling

• When dealing with a persistent telephone sales person do NOT put the phone down – take as much detail as possible, the callers name, company, telephone number, and position in the company.
• On the doorstep or on the high street always ask for and check ID cards. Reputable sales agents will not mind showing you.
• Never sign, or commit yourself to anything without giving yourself time to think about it and to compare prices from other suppliers in your area.
• You may be offered a special price or bonus gift if you sign immediately - don't sign anything until you are exactly sure of the commitment you will be making.
• Be wary of verbal promises - ensure any promises or offers are written into the agreement. If the sales agent refuses - don't sign!
• If you change your mind after you have signed an agreement, there is a 7-14 day cooling off period (varies from energy supplier) during which time you may cancel the agreement.
• Do NOT sign anything described as "taking part in a survey", "entry to a free prize draw" or "to let my boss know I've called on you".
• If you do decide to switch, ensure you have the sales agents ID details which can help you resolve any future problems you may have.
• If you are not interested in the sales agent’s offer, do NOT agree to have your meter read by this person.
• If you are not interested in the sales agent’s offer, do NOT disclose your SI/MPAN number. This is your unique customer number from your energy company of your electricity meter at your property.

Hopefully the above tips will help to convince you that switching energy suppliers is often very fruitful but it is a serious business. It's not the sort of thing that you should do on the spur of the moment. You need to be able to sit down and study what each of the suppliers is offering. Most of them have several different plans, designed to suit a variety of needs. Take your time to consider them all and I'm sure that you'll have a hassle-free and very profitable switching of energy and phone supplier.

Don't forget to click here to visit the uSwitch web site where you can read about all of the gas, electricity and telephone supplier deals without feeling under any pressure.