first:utility - new energy company launches

mark7144

Opinions? Is it cheaper than other suppliers? Is their smart metering going to be very beneficial?

http://www.first-utility.com/

Farway

There was a bit about this on Working Lunch today

Like all things it depends on your use, they have 3 tarifs, you do not choose the ones, it depends on time of day, so if you use a lot at say tea time, cooking dinner with electric then it will cost more

If however you are a night owl then you may be better off

The meter is read every half hour or so, hence they can easliy charge at correct time

The idea is you modify your life to use the cheaper periods
One plus is no more estimated bills, and you can see per hour on line your useage

Not one for me, I'm happy with Ebico

Premier_2

Interestingly, I can't see any tariff on the site

All I think I found was that they say you will be better off compared to British Gas standard tariff (which wouldn't be difficult)

Btw, they only supply electricity at present unless to a new build; gas supplies should be available by the end of the year they say.

The question is, if you switch the meter to use this company (switching meter is mandatory), how easy would it be to switch to a different supplier if things don't turn out as expected?

KimYeovil

They don't appear to publish their tariffs. Why?

KimYeovil

Moneysavingexpert seems to be the last place this should be mentioned. Instead of paying £8 to £35 for a make-do measuring device they'll be signing up for a brand new meter then swanning off after a month for a cheaper contract elsewhere. Money savers grabbing a state-of-the-art smart meter for the small premium of paying extra for six to eight weeks? Seems a wholly unsustainable business model to me.

amcluesent

>Seems a wholly unsustainable business model to me.<

Plus your £100 in labour and other costs for fitting the new meter!

That said, we do need a reform of homes to computerise the heating/lighting control systems. Look at the reliability and efficiency of cars since we did away with carburettors and mechanical rotor arms! Now we need the same for the home.

1carminestocky

KimYeovil wrote: »

They don't appear to publish their tariffs. Why?

There can really only be one answer, but maybe I'm just too cynical?

freddysmith

Guess they are waiting to finish their trial period and see what interest for the product is before announcing their price structure to the general public.
I am sure it will get scrutinised on this forum when they do.

Graham1

Out of interest I asked for a quote - almost exactly 30% more than I am paying at the moment.

1carminestocky

Graham1 wrote: »

Out of interest I asked for a quote - almost exactly 30% more than I am paying at the moment.

LOL!

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=13976097&postcount=5

1carminestocky

My prediction is this venture is doomed to failure. In the current market a company which launches with the mantra 'we are not price led' is IMO on a hiding to nothing. I genuinely don't think enough people will be so seduced by smart meters to pay a premium. Just my thoughts. Plus, is there anything in the T&Cs to stop people signing up for a couple of months, getting their smart meter installed then b*ggering off?