Npower new flat Questions?

Kev27

Just moved into a new flat and Npower run my electric (which is a quaterly meter) an Scottish gas run my gas which is pre pay. i phoned Npower to ask them to change me to a pre pay Key meter which they are gonna do for me next week free of charge, but ive just found out that they charge a standing quaterly charge for having one of their pre pay meters, does anyone know how much this is? also after they have installed the pre pay key meter is it ok if i move to Ebico more or less straight away as i know that they do not charge a standing quaterly charge for the meter? i will living in the flat on my own and not using much electric really so i presume that Ebico are the best company for me but if anyone can recommend a better company i would be most greatful cheers. (its my first time living alone in a flat so havent got much of a clue really but want the cheapest of everything as times are hard) cheers Kev

Drusillamac

I can't speak for Npower but SO and I had an awful experience with Scottish Power pre-payment meters. Three months AFTER we had moved in, we were still paying the previous tenant's debt despite numerous phone calls. We asked for the gas meter to be removed and were told it would cost us £250 for them to do so! We went to Scottish Hydro and they did it for free. Very happy with their service. Still on an electricity pre-pay meter but that is a long story I won't go into! The pre-pay meter costs us roughly £20-30pcm, depending on the time of year (costs more in winter obviously). Not sure if Ebico does a cheaper rate but it's worth paying for Scottish Hydro's customer service IMHO.

A case I will make against meters is that it sucks running out of credit and having to go out in the rain, snow etc. to get it topped up. Make sure you can top up your credit at a nearby shop/outlet. SO and I ran out of credit when we're stuck in bed unwell for a week. Fun times......

specialsparky

Hi,
don't be put off by standing charges it will mean your unit rate is lower, if you move to a supplier with no standing charge then you will pay a higher rate for every unit you use, so check first. There is very little difference on PP tariffs.
Use a comaparasion site to check.
Good luck hope this helps

JasX

Have a hunt round comparison sites, if you can get good dual fuel deal with a single supplier and grab cashback via a cashback site (some up to £120 odd) at the same time you'll be doing well

Good that they've been so ready to swap those awful pre-pay meters for normal ones, have been some horror stories around here about how expensive they can be to run, Monthly DD will work out a hell of alot cheaper but keep an eye on your actual meter readings and pass these on to your supplier so you don't end up with estimated bills (and risk of getting into debt).

If you look to compare and switch tariffs evey year you can pickup quite regular wads of cashback, plus recent rules means they can only keep the cheapest offers for shorter periods (seems to be about 2 years) before needing to hike them up to similar levels as the pre-payment meter customers so in theory don't get penalised for being stuck on that type of meter (which in fact they still very much are assuming the people with good MSE sense keep switching to the cheapest deals from time to time )

Kev27

Thanks for the informative advice guys i shall get on the comparison sites straight away. Thanks again, much appreciated Kev