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The Consumer Council is urging vulnerable consumers who might need additional support in the event of a loss of electricity, gas or water supplies to make sure that they are on the Customer Care and Critical Care Registers held by electricity, gas and water companies.

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI) consultation on the future of consumer representation in Northern Ireland has now closed and as readers will expect, the Consumer Council has submitted an in depth response. However, what has been really encouraging is that so many others took time to set out their reasons why consumer representation in Northern Ireland should be strengthened - not diminished or dismantled.

The last week of January has been designated Big Energy Saving Week in a national bid to raise awareness of energy and efficiency issues and help consumers find ways to cut their fuel bills.

The Consumer Council is encouraging passengers travelling from Northern Ireland Airports to pre-book their airport car-parking when heading away on business or holiday this year.

February brings with it a three word tonic; mid-term break! Those lucky enough to have a few days off, may well decide to hot foot it to the nearest airport on the first flight out of NI for a change of scene. However, these days, booking a flight can present a dizzying array of options in terms of the additional extras you may need to choose before you’ve even set foot on the plane. These can also often bump up the cost of flights.

The Consumer Council and the Northern Ireland Oil Federation (NIOF) have developed an industry first ‘Customer Charter’ to offer home heating oil consumers service guarantees such as a formalised complaints process, as well as flexible payment options and energy efficiency advice.

While this Monday is heralded to be ‘Blue Monday’, the most depressing day of the calendar year, the Consumer Council has said there are 1,628 reasons why it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom.