Staywarm

KK21_2

My father-in-law has Alzheimer's and has been with the Staywarm scheme for a few years.

He recently received a letter from e-on stating that his contract will end in a few weeks, but because of high energy levels the price will increase.

The letter states that the average new renewal price will be £2054 for 12 months .... but as a special offer, they can provide a WarmAssist fixed price of an average of £1325.

I have a couple of questions :-

Should he accept their offer ?

Would it be better to shop around the 'normal' energy companies .. especially as we are now moving ino the hotter weather.

Due to his Alheimer's my father-in-law has a few 'wee' accidents so the washing machine is used quite often.

Thank you for any replies provided.

MyRubyRed

Even at £1325 it seems pretty steep to me. What was he paying last year?

penrhyn

You need to find out what is annual consumption is, not what its currently costing him, then you will have the tools to do a comparison.

KimYeovil

WarmAssist is a variable (not fixed) tariff that is 15% cheaper than their standard tariff. Their online tariffs are 18 to 25% cheaper than their standard tariff.

KK21_2

MyRubyRed wrote: »

Even at £1325 it seems pretty steep to me. What was he paying last year?

About £80 per month , so £960 a year

Penrhyn

We'll have to try and find out what he's used ... if need be, for a rough guide take readings now and wait a few weeks to see. He doesn't get any written statements.

Thanks for all your replies

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi KK21

Thought it might help if I gave you a brief outline of our Staywarm/Warm Assist products.

Both products are designed specifically for customers aged 60 and over provided they are eligible for the schemes.

On Staywarm, customers pay a fixed monthly amount for 12 months from the date they sign up.

During this 12 month period, customers can use as much as energy as they like without any further charges. Therefore, no unexpected bills.

At the end of the 12 months, the account will be reviewed and a renewal offered. This offer will reflect the amount of energy used over the previous 12 months.

If previous usage has gone up significantly, the renewal price will generally also go up by a significant amount. In these cases, renewing may not be cost effective.

Therefore, we offer an alternative tariff to our more vulnerable customers. This is the Warm Assist product which gives 15 per cent discount off our standard prices.

As Kim says, Warm assist is not a fixed rate product. Unlike Staywarm, Warm Assist customers will be charged for all the energy used at standard prices less the discount.

Both products are aimed at a particular group of customers and it is important to stress that they are not necessarily the cheapest tariffs available, either from us or other suppliers.

As already stated, the best way of seeing the cheapest options around is by putting the annual usage in kWh on to one of the comparison sites.

Give us a call if you are unsure of the usage; we will be happy to let you know this.

Hope this makes things a bit clearer KK. Give me a shout if you need any more advice as will be happy to help.

Malc

stewie_griffin

KimYeovil wrote: »

WarmAssist is a variable (not fixed) tariff that is 15% cheaper than their standard tariff. Their online tariffs are 18 to 25% cheaper than their standard tariff.

WarmAssist is available in both variable and fixed

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmpublic/energy/memos/ucen08.pdf