Leaving Scottish Power..will they put me on another tariff then charge me?!

savvysammy

Hi All,

Have had a look back to see if there are other posts about this but there are SO many..i cant find any! Anyway, if anyone can help me then i believe it would help others as there is another tariff coming to an end soon (Dec 2009).
I have calculated that by moving this would save a lot of money! However i have heard of the nasty tales about Scottish Power automatically putting people onto ANOTHER fixed deal which would incur a penalty if they were to cancel!
Can anyone share their thoughs as to whether i would be drawn into this 'in my opinion' almost illegal practice if i tell them i will be moving prior to the end of the contract (31st Nov 09)?

Hope it makes sense!
Thanks, Sam

Cardew

A couple of threads on this very question if you do a search.

Scottish_Power

Hi savvysammy

From what you have said on the forum, it sounds like you have agreed to a tariff rate that has an expiry date of 31st Nov 2009. This tariff will have terms and conditions, one of which being that if you cancel the tariff before the expiry date then you may incur a penalty charge (£30.00 for electricity and £20.00 for gas).

If this is the case you might want to hold out until your current tariff expires and then make the required changes at that point.

If your contact expires on 31st Nov 2009, we will contact you prior to this date confirming the options available to you. You will have the option to opt out of any automatic tariff change (if applicable).

I hope this information has been useful.

Kind Regards

Colin @ ScottishPower

savvysammy

Hi- Thanks to Colin for your above reply-
* i did speak to someone from SP earlier who informed me that SP had a LOT of complaints/trouble with signing people up automatically to another tariff with a get out penalty and as such will NOT be doing this on tariffs ending on 31st Nov (Fixed Price Energy- Dec 09 Tariff). What will happen is that after the 31st, the account gets put onto a capped tariff at the same price as the current one but with no cancellation/leaving charge leaving the customers free to move to another energy supplier after the contract has ended.
Hope this helps those with this tariff- and thanks for the replies!

dave461_2

Just had an email off scottish power saying i'm goint to be moved onto "Fixed For Free June 2010" from the 1st Dec (there's no cancellation fee).

It's always nice to get some good news! So, as you're a loyal customer and your Fixed Price Energy Offer is coming to an end on 30th November 2009, we've prepared a new, lower priced deal just for you!

Lower prices guaranteed
When your current deal ends, we're lowering your prices and fixing them until 31st May 2010, at no additional cost and with no cancellation fees. This new deal, called Fixed For Free June 2010*, means your prices are fixed and won't go up or down in the next 6 months, making the colder winter months feel that little bit warmer. And, we'll take care of everything. On the 1st December 2009 we'll automatically move you to Fix For Free June 2010*, and your prices will come down. So, whatever happens, you don't have to worry about your energy prices.

View your new Fixed For Free prices

Protect your prices until September 2011†
If you prefer to plan further ahead and want the peace of mind that comes with knowing your energy prices won't rise until September 2011 then sign up for ScottishPower's Capped Price Energy September 2011 Offer†.

With this deal, your prices are capped which means they won't go above the capped rates before 31st August 2011. But they will come down if our standard monthly Direct Debit prices fall before then. What's more it's the longest capped deal currently available on the market.

With this offer, you can protect your prices right through to September 2011† for a small additional monthly payment of £1 for gas and £1 for electricity. To make this longer deal possible, we may have to charge a cancellation fee if you choose to end it early ^.