Bulk LPG - Cheapest suppliers / supply route?

For those who might be interested, the graphs now include the Malvern District Council/Listers Gas contract prices (where available).

See http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=58307499&postcount=1829 earlier in this thread for the latest graph.

:mad:

ingriddp wrote: »

hijust been reading all the post, we have been with flogas for 14years, and the ppl of their gas is nearly 80ppl and a standing charge of 15.29 per day,
we r out of contract just wondering if they can charge what they like, how much is everyone else paying out of contract?

Hi ingriddp, and welcome to the forum.

If you read back a little way through this thread, you will see straight away that your price of in the region of 80ppl is simply scandalous. if I were in your shoes, I would certainly write to my MP and the OFT: the more facts they have about rank profiteering, the better the chances that they might wake up and do something (although in the case of the OFT, I wouldn't hold your breath).

However, the far more pressing matter is to get your ppl back down to a sensible level. Dependent on your annual usage and where you are, you should be able to get a deal around the 45-50ppl rate, perhaps a little more if you are isolated and a low user (less than 2,500 litres per year), perhaps a shade less if you are a high-volume user (more than 5,000 litres per year) and are not too remote.

The first thing I would do would be to check your contract. Have you signed a contract renewal at any time in the past 2 years? If you have, you are probably tied in until that contract expires. If you have not, then you are a free agent and may change supplier at any time, without penalty.

If you are free to move, check the level of fuel in your tank. A transfer takes 4 weeks, and before that you will need to find a new supplier and negotiate a new deal. That in itself can take a few weeks, especially if there are any issues with the siting of your tank. If you have enough fuel to tide you over for a couple of months, get on the phone to Flogas as soon as you can and tells them that you wish to suspend automatic topups until further notice. Follow that up with a recorded delivery letter, confirming what you have said. If you want to be doubly sure, stick a notice prominently on the tank advising any delivery driver that topups have been suspended (and I would suggest taking a photo, just in case the delivery driver decides not to notice it!).

Your nest step will be to find a new supplier. Depending on where you are, you may have several suppliers to choose from, or you may have very few. The first place to start looking is the UKLPG supplier search. If you type in your postcode, this will list those suppliers who are UKLPG members that deliver in your area. It would also be worth digging around a little to see if you can identify any other suppliers operating in your local area. There are companies such as Extrafuel who deliver across the country, but will NOT appear on the supplier search. LittleVermin, (who posts here often) speaks highly of them, although they are unlikely to be the cheapest option if you are a high-volume user. You may also have a Machinery Ring (basically, a farmer's cooperative) in your area that you might be able to join (see my post on this route here), and if you are in the Malvern Council area, they have negotiated a special deal for local residents. Ideally, you want to speak to as many suppliers as possible - a quick ring round will get the ball rolling, and give you a hit list of possibles.

A couple of words of warning: Don't feel any misplaced loyalty to your existing supplier - the Leopard doesn't change its spots, no matter what promising "introductory" offers they may choose to make (plenty on this throughout this thread); Be aware, also, that MacGas (formerly BP Gas) has been bought and merged with Flogas, so despite the difference in name, MacGas and Flogas are one and the same company.

Inexplicably, the OFT did not see the Flogas/MacGas merger as detrimental to competition, despite the fact that just three companies (Calor [50%], Flogas [30%] and Avanti [10%] - all figures approximate) now control about 90% of the Domestic Bulk LPG market between them. But then, as I am sure everyone has now heard, the OFT believes that "Petrol and diesel competition is working well in the UK".

Go figure, but personally, I think it says far more about the OFT's competence in the petrochemical sector than it does about competition in that sector.

johnnybebad2000 wrote: »

The first port of call for me is to get in touch with their existing supplier, i believe macgas/flogas, and see what the deal is with them.

Personally, I wouldn't bother. YMMV :-)

johnnybebad2000 wrote: »

I will then look at Avanti and others and post my results on here.

A FAR better idea :-)

johnnybebad2000 wrote: »

My worry is that if there is an existing contract, by purchasing the house does that automatically mean i am bound by it?

If you are buying the property outright, you will be pleased to hear, absolutely NOT.

johnnybebad2000 wrote: »

Also, if not, we dont know how much LPG will be in the tank when we take ownership. So given it may take some weeks to switch, if we were running low is it acceptable to get a part fill from someone without entering a contract, like Gaulds for instance, or because the tank is owned by macgas/flogas can it only be them that fills it?

You will struggle to get anyone else to fill it, and you can bet that Flogas will refuse point blank unless you sign a new 2-year contract with them (which is probably not advisable), and they certainly won't give you a partial fill. My suggestion would be to negotiate with the buyers and find out how much is in the tank. If it looks like it will need a topup in the next couple of months, see if they can persuade Flogas to do a partial topup (although they may refuse a "partial" fill) and agree to buy the gas from the vendors at cost. And even if Flogas refuse a partial fill and you have to buy a full tank, that would still be vastly preferable to being coerced into signing a 2-year deal with them IMHO.

Many thanks yet again to HateLPG - what a stalwart!