Stronger action is needed from Ofgem to ensure that energy customers get a fair deal, according to a committee of MPs.
The MPs have called on the organisation to be less timid when it comes to dealing with "anti-competitive" behaviour by energy suppliers.
They also warned that recent plans by Ofgem and the government might still fail to help customers try and discern which the best price is "at a glance".
Ofgem indicated that it would analyse the details of the report from the Energy and Climate Change Committee before responding properly.
This comes after E.ON became the last of the big six suppliers in the UK to increase its prices starting in January, which will raise the annual bill of consumers.
The report from the committee said it finds it "unsatisfactory" that Ofgem is so hesitant when it comes to launching preliminary investigations into "anti-competitive behaviour".
"In a healthy market, suppliers would compete for a share of the market by continually striving to offer better deals, or by offering a unique or particularly high standard of service to differentiate themselves from competitors," the MPs said.
The report highlighted the fact that not enough people are willing to switch suppliers and those that are considering it can easily be put off by the huge number of tariffs available.
An Ofgem spokesman said in response: "We also share the committee's concerns about competition in the energy market, which is why we are progressing with reforms, to make it simpler and fairer for consumers."
This need has never been more prevalent as the Fuel Poverty Advisory Group recently suggested that as many as 300,000 extra households in the UK will be in fuel poverty this Christmas.
