New Consumer Body to be Created

Several consumer groups are to announce their plans to merge into a single unit, the BBC reports.

The National Consumer Council, Energywatch - which focuses on the gas and electricity markets - and Postwatch - which concentrates on the postal service - are to announce the plans later today. The bodies hope that they can combine to form a "one stop shop" for consumer complaints about shoddy service they have received.

Advice on general, rather than industry-specific, consumer matters will also be issued by the new group. A joint ombudsman scheme, to complement the current Financial Ombudsman and the new complaints service for customers of estate agents, is planned by the three groups.

The group is also anticipated to become a powerful voice in consumer affairs, due to the large amount of coverage its members have attracted in recent times. Energywatch in particular has provided strong support for increasing competition among gas and electricity providers, and was one of the groups to slam British Gas for its 35 percent bill hike last month.

It has also criticised Ofgem, the industry regulator, for not working hard enough on behalf of consumers.

The merger is currently scheduled to take place on October 1st.