In these belt-tightening times, it makes sense to seek out easy savings wherever you can. One of the simplest ways to cut back on household spending is to follow the lead of over 100,000 domestic electricity customers, who have switched from the ESB to one of the new providers, Airtricity or Bord Gáis.

The ESB used to have a monopoly on supplying electricity in Ireland, but since the market was deregulated, other providers can now sell electricity. With the advent of competition, prices are falling, which is good news for those of us who have to pay the bill.

Should you switch?
Switching is worthwhile. Say the annual total of your electricity bills is €1,000. By changing to a different supplier, you could save between €50 and €140 in a year. According to Bord Gáis, the average household will save between €90 and €130 in a year by switching.

Making the move to a new supplier is free, straight-forward and doesn't require any work done in your home. All you have to do is to apply to one of the new companies online or over the phone. They will take care of the paperwork involved and there will be no interruption to your electricity supply.

The amount of money you'll save by switching to Airtricity depends on how you pay. To save the maximum amount (or pay 13% less than you would as an ESB customer), new customers must opt for e-billing, or receiving their bills online rather than in traditional paper format, and sign up for the company's 'Budget Plan', which spreads the annual cost of your electricity over 12 equal monthly payments. This suits the company, but should also suit many customers, allowing them to budget exactly for the cost of their electricity, rather than having low bills in the summer months and high costs in the winter.

If you choose to pay by cheque, you'll save 5% on the ESB price. If you pay by cheque, but also accept e-billing, the saving will be 6%. And if you pay by direct debit, you'll save 12%.

Bord Gáis, meanwhile, guarantees its electricity will be 10% cheaper than the ESB no matter what. It also offers a further 2% reduction to those who pay by direct debit and another 2% reduction to the 500,000 households that are already Bord Gáis natural gas customers.

Can I get further reductions?
Prices may well come down further later from October 2009. Bord Gáis has applied to the CER for permission to decrease its domestic prices by 9.3%, for example.

To change supplier, apply to the new company you wish to use. It will deal with the transfer, so you will receive a final bill from your previous supplier and a letter confirming your payment details from the new supplier. Your electricity supply will then be switched to come from the new supplier with no break in supply to you.
If you are in receipt of the free electricity allowance social welfare payment, you will continue to receive it after you switch to a new provider.

After you switch, your electricity meter will still be read by ESB Networks. Furthermore, if you have a problem with your supply, it will also be ESB Networks you contact, rather than the company supplying you with electricity. (The number to call is 1850 372 757 or 1850 372 999 in an emergency.)

For the small effort it requires to switch, it's worth doing to save money, whichever supplier you choose. If you're concerned about environmental matters, you might prefer to opt for Airtricity as 79% of the electricity it supplies comes from renewable sources, compared to 16% of Bord Gáis electricity and 9% of ESB electricity.

Of course, no matter which supplier you use, there are many ways to save on the cost of electricity and save the environment too. Unplug electrical items when not in use and switch off lights and heating when you don't need them, for example.