Archive for the ‘Consumer matters’ Category


How are payments made in the UK?

June 3rd, 2016 by Roger Darlington

Payments UK has released a new report giving an overview of current and future trends in UK payment behaviour. The report, ​UK Payment Markets 2016​, reveals that cash continues to be the most popular method of payment, constituting 45% of all payments in 2015. It also predicts, however, that by 2025, cash payment will have […]

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A review of the novel “Room”

May 9th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

First, I saw the film; then I had to read the book. The novel by Emma Donoghue is a marvellous work and I’ve reviewed it here.

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Do you or someone you know need help with your water bills?

April 21st, 2016 by Roger Darlington

For the past four years, I’ve chaired a customer body which provides an independent challenge to South East Water, so I’ve been very active in the water sector especially around issues of affordability and vulnerability. Almost all water companies in England & Wales now have a social tariff in place to help customers who are […]

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Post Office’s Network Transformation Programme gathers pace

April 7th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

The Post Office network is currently undergoing its largest ever restructuring through the Network Transformation Programme (NTP). Under the programme, the vast majority of post offices will convert to one of two new operating models – Post Office Mains and Post Office Locals. The programme gathered pace towards the end of 2015 and, by February, […]

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Do you know the price of a postage stamp?

March 9th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

The ​price of stamps for a standard letter up to 100g will rise by 1p on 29 March. The cost of a first class stamp will increase to 64p, and the cost of second class will rise to 55p. In addition, Royal Mail will increase the price of sending small and medium parcels by 5p […]

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Essential services: getting extra help

February 24th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

Services such as gas, electricity, water, phones and public transport are not luxuries. We need them every day to look after ourselves, and if you’re older, ill or have a disability, or you’ve suddenly found yourself in vulnerable circumstances, you may have particular needs. This new leaflet, produced by the UK Regulators Network, tells you about […]

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My new appointment: Chair of the Essential Services Access Network

January 28th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

Since I took early retirement from the Communications Workers Union 14 years ago, I have worked part-time, sitting on various bodies representing consumers in regulated sectors, especially communications. This week, I took on another such appointment, that of Chair of a body called the Essential Services Access Network (ESAN). The object of ESAN is to […]

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Why were the opinion polls so wrong in predicting the result of the British General Election of May 2015?

January 20th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

This week, a report by Professor John Curtice for research agency NatCen was published which essentially concluded that the pollsters failed to obtain a genuinely random sample. As a result, they underestimated support for the Conservative Party. The problem is that some voters are easier to contact than others. Those who are easier to contact […]

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How good is the quality of your water?

January 16th, 2016 by Roger Darlington

This week, in my capacity as Chair of the South East Water Customer Panel, together with other Panel colleagues, I visited one of the company’s water treatment works at Bewl in Kent to learn more about how water is treated before it is of the right quality for customers. Many customers think that running a […]

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Why and how the customer needs to be heard in regulatory debates and decision-making

December 8th, 2015 by Roger Darlington

SPEAKING NOTES FOR “CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT IN REGULATION” WORKSHOP ORGANISED BY THE CENTRE FOR ANALYSIS OF RISK & REGULATION AT THE LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS, 7 December 2015 Roger Darlington Chair, Consumer Forum for Communications WHY CUSTOMERS NEED AN INSTITUTIONAL VOICE IN REGULATED SECTORS How do individual customers and companies engage with one another? In all […]

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