OVO after the first 12 months

Ignite

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone knows what OVO are going to be doing to our tariffs after the first fixed 12 months has passed. It's probably coming up to the 12 month period for their early customers so perhaps we might start to find out.

Thanks

PillBoy

OVO e mail stating new tarifs:

Wholesale prices have changed significantly since you signed up. We promise to always give our variable tariff customers as much notice as possible so you can plan accordingly. As of the 20th October 2010, your price per unit will change to the following:
Variable Prices
The new electricity price will be 9.68p /kWh
The new electricity standing charge will be 17.26p per day
The new gas price will be 2.78p/kWh
The new gas standing charge will be 16.44p per day


Fixed Prices
Electricity unit price: 9.21p/kWh
Electricity standing charge: 17.26p per day
Gas unit price: 2.57p/kWh
Gas standing charge: 16.44p per day

Hope this helps

rogcal

I've been with OVO on their fixed rate electricity tariff for around 6 months and I cannot fault their prices however, in other respects I find the company devious and lacking in any sense of fair play.

Today I received an email telling me that due to the coming winter months and my previous two years meter readings, they were going to raise my DD by almost 80%.

What I find strange is they have no idea of the previous two years meter readings as I was with another supplier, they only have the consumption figures from my last year with BG to calculate my expected consumption this year and that is the figure they used to calculate my monthly DD payment and finally they have no way of knowing if I use vastly more electricity in the winter than in the rest of the year.

In fact my monthly consumption stays pretty much the same throughout the year and I'm happy that the DD amount I pay each month covers that consumption.

So, I must conclude from their email and subsequent converstaion with them that they are attempting to maximise the credit they can screw out of their customers in an attempt increase their cash flow which fits in nicely with the fact that they recently made great play about the fact that they would pay 3% interest on credit balances.

Now, let me see, 3% interest paid out on any money held by OVO in customer accounts strikes me as being a very cheap way of borrowing funds when commercial loans are hellishly expensive and hard to obtain.

Like I said playing the cash flow game at our expense. Nice one OVO!

Plushchris

rogcal wrote: »

Like I said playing the cash flow game at our expense. Nice one OVO!

What expense? You havent lost that money and you are earning 3% interest on it.

If you have a large amount of credit on your account ask for it back!

Andy_WSM

rogcal wrote: »

Like I said playing the cash flow game at our expense. Nice one OVO!

Sounds a fair deal to me - better than any interest rate on a bank account for a small amount of cash.

rogcal

If you have a large amount of credit on your account ask for it back!

Ah but there's the rub, OVO don't want to give you that option.

It's either you accept the increased DD payment or pay them a lump sum upfront to cover the shortfall they calculate there will be on your account after the winter (£350 in this case).

Like I said in my original post they have no sense of fair play and anyway it's my money and if I want to keep hold of it and not lend it to them for 6 months, I should have the choice.

Can you imagine going into Sainsburys in November and on getting to the checkout find they predict you will spend more over Xmas and please would you pay for your Xmas shopping in advance to cover their cost of getting extra goods on the shelves.

Yeh right, you'd shop elsewhere and show them what you think of their idea.

Incidentally, when I was with BG for over 6 years, they were quite happy to accept a fixed DD payment whatever the season and if I fell short during one billing period because of higher consumption, they were happy to receive the shortfall by bank transfer as soon as the statement reached me.

Hey Andy, can you lend me ten grand? I'll give you 4% interest on it!;)

dogshome

Hmmm - So we have a newish player on the market who's started racking up cash contributions from it's customers, with the sweetener of a high 3% interest on Credit balances.

I'm not with OVO, but if I were I'd be checking as to wether or not customers credit balances were Ring Fenced in a client account, just in case the t*ts go vertical.

rogcal

Good old OVO did just as I expected and rather than return my call as promised, they sent me a standard email covering those parts of the agreement telling me they can up the DD or ask for a lump sum up front if they feel like.

Never mind that their calculations are based on their imagination rather than fact.

I get the feeling I'm going to be walking away from them and even if I get hit with a £30 penalty for ending the contract early, it will be money well spent.

From the very begining I've had bad vibes about OVO and recent and earlier events have born this out and if anyone is thinking about signing up with them, think long and hard about it.

You may save a few quid but money isn't everything when it comes to peace of mind and assurances that you are dealing with a professonally run organisation with sound business ethics.

DeOVOious sums them up nicely!

t0rt0ise

I was with OVO for 8 months and found it odd that they automatically reduced the DD in the spring. Most companies don't do this and I was quite willing and expected to pay the same all year round. I wonder now if they did that so that come the winter they could up it much higher than it was last winter. When I joined them they wanted a higher DD but I said that if they didn't lower it I wouldn't join so they did but once they've got you it's a different matter.

But in their defence, I've been with several suppliers now and I've left all of them feeling unsatisfied for one reason or another.

Fairzo

dogshome wrote: »

Hmmm - So we have a newish player on the market who's started racking up cash contributions from it's customers, with the sweetener of a high 3% interest on Credit balances.

I'm not with OVO, but if I were I'd be checking as to wether or not customers credit balances were Ring Fenced in a client account, just in case the t*ts go vertical.

So, what are the implications of a utility company going breasts skyward, both in terms of the credit accumulated by customers and continuation of supply?

Terrylw1

rogcal wrote: »

Today I received an email telling me that due to the coming winter months and my previous two years meter readings, they were going to raise my DD by almost 80%.

What I find strange is they have no idea of the previous two years meter readings as I was with another supplier, they only have the consumption figures from my last year with BG to calculate my expected consumption this year and that is the figure they used to calculate my monthly DD payment and finally they have no way of knowing if I use vastly more electricity in the winter than in the rest of the year.

When you change Supplier, your old old Supplier passes them the last 12 months of estimated usage. The readings agencies also do their own.

So, they can possibly use this. Can't say thats a standard affair though since your old Supplier's records could always be garbage!