Can we buy direct from National Grid?

giraffe69

Once upon a time we had a joined up industry.

Yes, the good old days when we were told who we got our Electricity from, when there was no competition, when switching was not possible.
Much better to have the same people in charge of all phases, much more competitive.
Perhaps we could nationalise it all for greter efficiency.

grahamc2003

giraffe69 wrote: »

Yes, the good old days when we were told who we got our Electricity from, when there was no competition, when switching was not possible.
Much better to have the same people in charge of all phases, much more competitive.
Perhaps we could nationalise it all for greter efficiency.

Yes, the good days when electricity was cheap and people didn't spend most of their time trying to work out what was happening with their latest switch and chasing up the missing cashbacks and cases of cheap plonk, and trying in vain to get their suppliers to tell them how much they are being charged per unit (because even they can't work it out). When the electricity industry basically did what was necessary to get electricity cheaply into our homes instead of now where most of their effort and expenditure is geared to confusing customers (and themselves), and delivering electricity seems to be a minor bi-product of their convoluted and malregulated non-sensical business of tariff invention and disposal.

C_Mababejive

Yes the good old days when ;

If you wanted a new gas supply to your house,it was free.,

If you had a gas leak,you got the first half hour of repairs free

When old age pensioners got free or heavily subsidised winter servicing of their gas fires

When there was only one number to ring for all services and real people answered the phone

When you could get things fitted or repaired by well trained engineers who could be trusted and you got a bill in the post which,if it was too much to pay at once,could be stage paid or added to your gas account.

When there were gas showrooms in every high street where you could go speak to real people and view the latest range of appliances.

Where there were high quality apprenticeships on offer every year so that your son and daughter had a chance of getting a good job

AlanMoneySavingMan

Thanks. I'll have a look at Energy Futures.

However, buying from the grid directly wasn't *quite* what I was meaning (my own fault I know for piggy-backing on this existing thread instead of starting a new one!).

I am currently an nPower customer. If I and a few tens of my neighbours wanted to federate and buy from nPower (or EDF or ... whoever) as a "club" are they legally obliged to deal with consumers in that mode? I believe businesses have arrangements like this all the time, and it's called "basket buying".

As you all know, this idea of local communities clubbing together is fairly commonly done when buying heating fuel for oil-fired central heating systems, and it can win some worthwhile discounts, but can it be done for buying electricity?

My basic thought here is that if it's true that, as everyone seems to believe, the energy industry is taking domestic consumers for a ride in order to provide profits to overseas investors, that is probably happening because they can divide and rule UK consumers (as indeed can the oil companies for petrol/diesel because the AA and RAC are nothing like militant enough in standing up for motorists!).

If the kind of arrangement I have in mind (what I might call "strategic block buying") could be made to happen, then consumers could gain more clout and no longer be divided and ruled. It's probably a pipe-dream, and might require the government to put extra T&C into the operating licenses of the companies concerned though?

Anyone know the true situation?

Thanks
Alan
"Happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have"
Rabbi Hyman Schachtel. (1907-1990)

lemontart

Simple answer NO . National Grid are not suppliers nor do they have a license to supply they are transporters/transmission as my illustrious colleague as already stated they do not own or have gas or electricity to sell they operate the infractruture that gets it to you.

Pincher

AlanMoneySavingMan wrote: »

I am currently an nPower customer. If I and a few tens of my neighbours wanted to federate and buy from nPower (or EDF or ... whoever) as a "club" are they legally obliged to deal with consumers in that mode? I believe businesses have arrangements like this all the time, and it's called "basket buying".

There's probably too many green obligations, these days.
One of your neighbours is going to say, what about my FIT payments? As a co-op, it's unlikely he will get it.

It's probably easier to build a wood fire steam powered generator.
You might even get some kind of renewable microgeneration FIT.

Actually, that gives me an idea, an AGA with micro CHP!

AlanMoneySavingMan

On this subject, my wife got this email. If it's on the MSE site somewhere, I've missed it?

Seems like a good idea? no?


Dear xxx

In just a couple of weeks, over 200,000 of us have signed up to the Big Switch - a people-powered effort to stop gas and electricity companies from ripping us off. But if we're going to take on these big energy bullies and win, we need to be bigger. much bigger.

The Big Switch is making history. [1] It's a simple idea - using the internet, we bring together gas and electricity customers across the country in a pledge to switch their supplier. Then we work with consumer experts at Which? to negotiate cheaper rates on our behalf. Once we've driven the hardest bargain possible, we switch to the supplier offering the best deal.

At the beginning of April the Which? negotiators will be rolling up their sleeves to start negotiating the cheapest prices. That means there are just
72 hours left to sign up to get involved. Don't miss out, click here to sign
up:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/the-big-switch
<http://www.38degrees.org.uk/page/m/74c0576c/2d47c06f/5b2786e1/4674a1f1/2552
469217/VEsH/>

A quick reminder of how this works:
1. Sign up - join other 38 Degrees members to get a fair deal on gas and electricity 2. Share it with your friends - the more of us who get involved, the stronger our bargaining position 3. Bargain - we work with Which? experts to negotiate with gas and electricity companies 4. Switch - If you like the deal we negotiate, switch easily online [2]

Sign up now, you can always pull out later if you like. [3] Then forward this email to any friends and family who also want cheaper bills:
https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/the-big-switch
<http://www.38degrees.org.uk/page/m/74c0576c/2d47c06f/5b2786e1/4674a1f1/2552
469217/VEsE/>


Thanks for being involved,

Becky, James, David, Cian, Hannah, Marie and the 38 Degrees team

macman

With only 211,000 registered, this is simply not going to work. That is barely 0.7% of the market, assuming about 30m supplies.
Without bigger numbers, the negotiators will have no muscle at all. And with only 3 days left, it seems that Which are beginning to panic.

Terrylw1

Agree with Macman, if its not in the millions, it wont be much to some them, baring in mind this will be a proportion of each supplier. It could be in the thousands from some suppliers who will simply turn them over again the next month.

Should Which do this, do they not think the suppliers will compensate against those not included by way of stealth charges and higher prices?

If someone wants to decrease fuel bills, stop looking at prices as just linked to buying and look at the hundreds of millions these lumbering old companies are wasting on the bottom line.

macman

The other catch is that many of those who've reg'd (myself included) are likely to be more tariff-aware than average and will already be on the cheapest deals.
I doubt that 50% of those reg'd will actually sign up to this tariff (if it ever happens).