Pubs save thousands after utility bills challenged

The Laburnum in Bootle, Mersyside, saved thousands of pounds alone on its gas and electricity bills after pub group Admiral Taverns discovered it was being heavily overcharged.

The review is part of an estate-wide project to help licensees.

It found  a simple error by the gas and electric provider caused The Laburnum to be overtaxed.

In 2014 the Laburnum’s gas meter switched from imperial readings to metric, but the utilities firm overlooked the change, failing to recalculate accordingly.

Marie Freeman, the long-standing licensee at The Laburnum, said: “Admiral were a great help – I tried to get it rectified myself but nothing happened and no one at the energy company was taking me seriously.

“Admiral investigated the bills and it appeared that although the meter had been changed, the billing had not, which meant we were being overpriced.

The energy supply project monitors bills, identifies the best and most efficient suppliers and where necessary provides representation in legal disputes and negotiations.

The scheme by Admiral’s in-house legal team is led by Chris Jenkins.

He said: “Energy bills are a big overhead for our licensees, and it’s clear that overcharging and mischarging is an issue for some of our pubs. In the past we have looked at this from time to time, but we saw an opportunity to implement a more concerted process to ensure our pubs are not being charged excessively.

“Marie’s bills were getting out of hand – at times she was paying around £3,000 to £4,000 a month. Addressing the billing problem has saved the Laburnum approximately £6,000.”

The project is in initial stages, but already has helped a number of licensees.

“The project is expected to deliver energy cost-savings that will put cash back into the hands of our licensees. We can only expect this momentum to build further as word spreads across the business,” Mr Jenkins added.

Successes include Admiral pubs Crown Hotel in Maesteg, Miners Arms in Ashton-under-Lyne and Huntsman in Blaydon-on-Tyne, saving a combined £6,000.

“We have also identified several licensees who have been charged on deemed rates - rates that were already attached to the property – and we are now working with utilities management specialists, Utility Business Services, to get these licensees onto contracts with suppliers which can save them anywhere between 20% to 40% on annual costs,” Mr Jenkins concluded.