Do comparison sites REALLY work? - (E-On rep might like to look at this as well ....)

steveksullivan

I was on Uswitch yesterday and was thrilled to see that by switching from Scottish power to E-On I would save 250-odd pounds per year .....

Until I looked at the actual pricing on the tariffs ......

Dual fuel so there are four prices - gas upto a limit, gas over that limit and the same for electricity.

THREE OUT OF FOUR of the prices on the E-On tariff were more expensive than my current tariff - the only one which was cheaper was the high end electricity price ... and that only by 1/2p per kWh!

Even giving them the benefit of the doubt and calculating the WHOLE of my submitted electricity figure multiplied by 1/2p I only get £60 saving .......(and by definition all the other elements of the bill must be more expensive)

Also the total amount Uswitch reckon I would spend on my current tariff is nearly £1500 and yet Scottish Power only want a standing order of £85 per month - a total of £1020 a year - and they are very quick off the mark to adjust if they think the standing order is too low!!

Am I missing something or is wool being pulled over eyes......

EDIT- by the way, the thresholds for the various price breaks were broadly similar and would not have accounted for the difference

SECOND EDIT - oh, and when I phoned E-on to check the figures I was told that over the phone they cant quote for on-line tariffs ..... strange .... Scottish Power can ....?!?!?

JasX

yes they all DO really work.

they DON'T work if you give them junk/inaccurate information, always quote in annual kWH.

different break points can make a huge difference, did you work out exact numbers yourself on a spreadsheet or are you 'guessing' ?

steveksullivan

For my annual consumption given as you suggest in annual kWh......

The rest is just logic - as I say the break points were almost identical and the rest of the figures would appear to speak for themselves - dont they?

E.ON_Company_Representative

Hi steveksullivan,

My first thought would be that the comparison websites are accurate as long as the information provided is.

The unit rates between suppliers maybe the same, but have you compared the relevant discounts applied for each respective tariff?

Some E.ON tariffs have discounts of over 20%, this could make a large difference.

Brian

JasX

steveksullivan wrote: »

For my annual consumption given as you suggest in annual kWh......

The rest is just logic - as I say the break points were almost identical and the rest of the figures would appear to speak for themselves - dont they?

just hopping onto Uswitch

Eon have tarifffs with break points of 2680 kWH gas and 900 kWH electric
The price step is around 3.2p for gas and 15p for electric

scottish power depending on tariff can have a gas break at 4572 or on another a electric break point of 500

multiplying out those different break points each equate to about a £60 diffference.

plus discounts etc that get tapped on price differences can easily mount up to the numbers you quote

PS I'm reversing my earlier answer about comparison sites being accurate, they never take account of the extra cashback you can pickup changing to whatever deal they suggest via topcashback/quidco etc (£120 odd at last check) so only represent minimum savings.....:A

steveksullivan

Knew there had to be an obvious answer - I was missing discounts as these are not spelt out in the 'key facts' about the tariffs, .....Guess I'll be going to E-On then !!

JasX

steveksullivan wrote: »

Knew there had to be an obvious answer - I was missing discounts as these are not spelt out in the 'key facts' about the tariffs, .....Guess I'll be going to E-On then !!

TCB are giviing £70 cashback ontop of any E.on deal if you switch via them

http://www.topcashback.co.uk/eon-domestic/

don;t forget to clear your cookies

steveksullivan

Thanks for that !!

As a moneysaver ashamed to say that although I know how they work have not used a cashback site yet....

Do I need to register first and how long b4 the cash arrives?

Also must be having a bad day but that link isn't working for me .......

macman

Use the comparison sites to give you the likely tariffs that will offer the biggest savings. Then check what you can get on the cashback side of things and sign up via there.
Yes, you need to register, take 10 minutes. Payout times vary, but around 2 to 3 months typically. Obviously will be longer on utilities because of the switching lag.

JasX

steveksullivan wrote: »

As a moneysaver ashamed to say that although I know how they work have not used a cashback site yet....

Do I need to register first and how long b4 the cash arrives?
.

Basically you need to sign up with the cashback site and create an account. you also need to be careful that the sale/cookies will trace your signup purchase back to the site.

-Basically browse normally and work out what you want to buy and sign up for.
-Then close all internet browser windows and clear your cookies and browsing history.
-go to the cashback site and sign in
-follow their link to the retailer/gas company and proceed as normal to buy whatever
(there is a 'test tracking' feature built into the site to make sure your cookies etc are setup ok -you should look for that)


your cashback should start to 'track' within a week or so (follow it up/querey it if there is no trace)

It can take up to 3-4 months to actually become payable.

steveksullivan

The USwitch site says that the cheapest way to 'buy' the e-on tariff is by going via the USwitch site ....

If I go direct to e-on via a cashback site will I get the same pricing?

..... and the link is working fine it was my bl$£dy wireless router again !!