It's the dinnertime door knock we all dread - the fast-talking salesperson promising the best deal in town, and often they’re from a power company pushing you to make the switch.
Pensioner Wayne Fisher regrets the day he fell for the sales pitch of a door-to-door salesman. He signed what he believed was a better deal, but he didn't read the fine print, and the salesman certainly didn't raise it.
“They just offered us a three per cent discount,” Fisher said. “What he didn’t mention was that you had to pay your bill out on time to get the three per cent.”
More stories from Today TonightWhen Wayne hit hard times his missed a payment, and to add to the burden, lost his discount.
“One bill we got from them was about $430, and then it went up to about $599, so it was a big jump.”
Even if you say no though, the power can still be taken out of your hands.
64-year-old Carolyne Benyon from Tweed Heads made one mistake - she engaged energy broking service Energy Watch to see if she could save.
Within weeks her power was switched to another carrier, and she didn't even know.
“I’d given them no permission to take over my electricity supply, and they did it,” she said.
Benyon rang and cancelled the account that she hadn't requested, but it didn't make a spark of difference. In the end she surrendered.
“I stayed with AGL because it was in the ‘too hard’ basket.”
Marketing expert Paul Harrison from Deakin University knows the tactics of cold call salesmen better than most. He not only studied them, he's made a documentary, warning consumers about the tricks they use, titled Shutting the Gate.
“It's a highly scripted, highly contrived, and planned process,” he said.
Harrison says door knockers will try and assume control as early as possible, and try and win favour by using compliments or showing care.
“What people need to recognize is that these people are trying to sell them something, they’re not their friend.”
Consumer Action Law Centre's Nicole Rich claims that with a deregulated market competition between the power companies is fierce. As a result, each power retailer has armies of door knockers on the street trying to do business.
“At the moment we're aware that there's a lot of electricity and gas contracts being sold door to door, and unfortunately we are getting a lot of complaints from consumers about what’s being told to them, and what’s getting done at their doorstep to try and get them to sign up to contracts."
Rich's advice is to always remember it's your house, not theirs.
“You really have to have your wits about you, but it can be really hard to resist,” Rich said. “You can say no to these sales people, and you can make a complain if you are not happy with how you have been treated.”
As a result of the rising number of complaints, businesses are cashing in, and selling ‘Do Not Knock’ stickers to put on your door and gate.
Even the ACCC has moved to regulate the tactics salesman are allowed to use, and enforced a ten day cooling off period for any deal you sign at your front door.
Ben Freund is from Australia's leading independent energy comparison website, Go Switch. He claims that while consumers should be cautious of sales tricks, it shouldn't put you off looking for the best deal.
“Switching is the most rational thing you can do as an energy consumer. There is no such thing as good electricity, or bad electricity – it’s all the same. You should always be buying electricity from the cheapest source. Just be informed,” he said.
Go Switch recently crunched some big numbers, and worked out that if every Australian household switched to the cheapest deal, we'd save more than $800 million. The catch is knowing how, or where, to get it.
'''Watch the Shutting the Gate documentary from tribalinsight films, exploring the relationship between anxiety and decision-making.'''
Contact details
- Knock Stoppers - www.knockstoppers.com.au
- Consumer Action Law Centre - www.consumeraction.org.au
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