Having a ball! Energy firm workers are filmed playing water volleyball on luxury Maldives island as they enjoy all-expenses-paid trip while millions struggle with bills
- Utility Warehouse sent representatives for eight days to sign up new customers
- Group are treated to an all-inclusive stay at the £594-a-night OBLU Xperience
Energy firm workers sent to the Maldives for an all-inclusive holiday while consumers struggle to pay the bills cause a splash in new video of them larking around.
Utility Warehouse treated its representatives to an eight-day holiday as a reward for signing up new customers.
They were awarded an all-inclusive stay at the OBLU Xperience, where rooms cost up to £594 a night, which one critic described as a ‘kick in the teeth’ as customers struggle to heat their homes.
And new footage obtained by MailOnline shows a huge group of them in a pool enjoying water ball games.
The reps can be heard shouting as other guests watch on from the pool side.
In further images posted on social media, the UW agents – who are self-employed – could be seen enjoying themselves at an underwater restaurant, while others showed off the gorgeous views.
Some of the 100 reps are seen having the time of their lives in the luxury Maldives jaunt
Playtime for the 100 Utility Warehouse reps on their free holiday in the Maldives this month
The 100 agents arrived on the island last Tuesday after landing in the capital Malé and catching a 15-minute speedboat ride to the island of Ailafushi, The Sun reported.
Reps were seen playing volleyball in the pool, relaxing on sunbeds and handing out business cards at the resort.
One holidaymaker said the idea did not sit right with them during the cost of living crisis.
‘They just chill on the beach or by the pool most of the day. They have also hired out part of the restaurant,’ they said according to The Sun.
The idyllic resort could be seen on social media posts of the Maldives holiday
Only BLU – the largest underwater restaurant in the Maldives – is featured in the snaps
Another said the staff had ‘ruined’ their stay as they were handing out businesses cards and ‘giving sales pitches’.
Utility Warehouse relies on word-of-mouth marketing and has self-employed agents who earn commission every time they sign up customers to broadband, mobile and insurance deals.
The company has recently seen a boost in sign ups following an increase in customers seeking cheaper deals such as energy offers that are £125 less than the price cap.
It has more than 800,000 customers and is ‘targeting an additional million over the next four to five years’.
In exchange for signing up four new customers every month for a year, agents have the opportunity to travel to holiday locations like the Maldives and Mexico.
Utility Warehouse has treated its representatives to an eight-day holiday. Pictured: OBLU Xperience
The 100 agents arrived on the island last Tuesday after landing in the capital Malé and catching a 15-minute speedboat ride to the island of Ailafushi (pictured)
If partners sign up enough customers they can win rewards such as meals out, family holidays and cars.
Warren Kirwan, from disability charity Scope, told The Sun the trip was a ‘kick in the teeth’ as representatives are relaxing on a beach ‘while disabled people are freezing and starving in their own homes’.
He argued that companies should focus on supporting customers instead of ‘profiteering’ from the crisis.
A Utility Warehouse spokesman said: ‘More than 50,000 people across the UK from all backgrounds are UW Partners.
‘Our partners are self-employed and earn an income by referring our services to their friends and family.
‘In doing so, we offer a meaningful way to help people earn their way out of the cost-of-living crisis.
‘We also offer partners ways to earn extra incentives such as holidays.
‘We are proud of our hard-working partners and are transparent about the opportunities that come with it.’
Utility Warehouse and OBLU Xperience have been contacted for further comment by MailOnline.
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