Should we fix to British Gas Price Fix until 2011?

jemw

I am so confused

We live in a very old house with a 15-20 year old boiler

The rising energy prices are worrying and I've looked at the price comparison website which says BG Fix til 2009 is the best for us (although it says we'll pay more than we do now?)

But when I looked on BG website to find this offer, the only one I can see is the fixed tariff until 2011. This sin't on the comparison website so I don't know if this is the best option for us?

Can anyone please help?

MrBlonde_2

jemw wrote: »

I am so confused

We live in a very old house with a 15-20 year old boiler

The rising energy prices are worrying and I've looked at the price comparison website which says BG Fix til 2009 is the best for us (although it says we'll pay more than we do now?)

But when I looked on BG website to find this offer, the only one I can see is the fixed tariff until 2011. This sin't on the comparison website so I don't know if this is the best option for us?

Can anyone please help?

yes... the 2009dec offer ended today at close of business (8pm)..the new offer is to fix your unit price (new after price rise) until 2011... imo this is the first of a few incremental price rises over the next few years

Plushchris

You should be aware that the 2011 tariff has a cancelation fee of £100.

Being this has been released after the price rise of 35% I would say its a bit of a gamble, if prices were to drop at all in the next 3 years (hey, it could happen!) then you would be stuck with a high tariff or pay £100 to get out.

Fixing for a long time is a good idea, but at such a high price with a £100 cancelation fee? That just makes it a bit of a gamble in my opinion.

kjsmith7

£100 isn't THAT much - it's £70 for gas and £30 for elec, which is less than some other "get out" fees. It's unlikely the prices are going to drop due to political turmoil in the oil producing nations, which is directly affecting the price of the gas we buy from Europe as it's related to the oil market. If anything, prices will rise more and more. Not going on a price protection now is a major gamble as there is no guarantee that there'll be a decent one around when (or if) the prices do rise any more...

jowie

Here's the email I actually received from British Gas:

Dear Mr ***

Fix your prices until 2011.

World oil and gas prices have been reaching record highs - this is an issue facing all energy suppliers. This means the cost of energy we buy for you has been going up and will probably continue to rise. In fact, in the last six months wholesale energy prices have increased by more than 60%. Unfortunately, as a result of this, we have to increase our prices.

This email is regarding:
Your electricity & gas prices

Your pricing area: London

If you have any questions please visit our help and advice section online.
So, for a home with average usage, standard electricity prices have risen on average by 9%, and standard gas on average by 35%. Our new prices came into effect on 30 July 2008. I fully understand that these rising prices come at a very difficult time for everyone, and I'm sorry we haven't been able to delay these rises any longer.

Visit our website to see your new prices. You'll also find more information on why energy prices are increasing and what we're doing to help you with rising energy costs.

No more price rises for three years – guaranteed.

Sign up for Fixed Price 2011 today and you'll have the peace of mind that your energy prices won't increase until September 2011 - and that's guaranteed. Apply online today and we'll do the rest.

Save up to 1/3 on your energy bills.

With rising household costs, now is the time to start looking for more ways to use less energy. So, to help you, we've made our Energy Savers Report even better. It now has a new Energy Planner that shows you how you could save energy and money – up to £444* in fact. Try it today to see how much you could save.

We always aim to give the best level of service.

You can now view our 2008 Standards of Performance online. This explains the services we provide, the levels of customer care that we guarantee and the service levels you can expect from the companies that maintain your pipes and cables (network operators).

Thank you for being a British Gas customer. You are important to us.

Yours sincerely



Phil Bentley
Managing Director

P.S. We will automatically reassess your Direct Debit payment at the time of your next statement. We will write to let you know before we change your payments. So you don't need to do anything.

Terms and conditions of Fixed Price 2011.

*Based on Energy Savers Report data March 2006 - June 2008 plus efficiency advice.

Email Ref: EM/PRI5/0808

What's Martin's view on this? Should we be doing this or staying put with our existing tariff? Is the decision different for people like me who have BOTH gas and electricity with British Gas?



thanks!