When to cancel DD to previous supplier.

poet123

We are moving dual fuel supplier to EON their first DD will be taken on 24/11 do I allow the DD to my current supplier to go out for October and then cancel or cancel now and pay the balance by cheque/phone. Or is it usual to be billed in advance for fuel making the 24/11 payment cover the month in advance and meaning I should not yet cancel my current DD.

I know I could ring them but OH is lead name and is away so I am assumung they will cite the DPA and not discuss the account.

Swipe

I am in a similar boat. I received notice from my new supplier that my account is now live and active. I just called my previous supplier who advised me to cancel the existing DD with them and that a few days after my final bill is issued, I would receive any credit owed to me directly into my bank account (regardless as to whether or not there's a DD in place).

t0rt0ise

In my experience you have to be careful of cancelling the DD too early. I did it once because I knew I had already paid more than enough for the final bill and when I said on the phone would that mean they charged me at a higher rate as I had no DD, they said "oh no, we wouldn't do that" and then they promptly did.

Terrylw1

What you have to consider is any discounts you get. If in the final bill, you are due to see discounts, cancelling before they produce it could mean they automatically remove them.

I would suggest waiting for the final bill really. You will get your money either refunded to your account or via cheque. It just might be an inconvenience since a change of supply can take 4-6 weeks. However, if you gave your reading to switch, it will be quicker.

Just be aware that systems calculate bills, hence any discount on the final bill could be lost if you cancel the DD before it's produced. Once it has been though, cancel it and send a cheque for the rest if you owe anything.

As per t0rt0ise, it's all done via system automation so even though you have paid more than needed, the system just sees the change from DD and changes the charges like it would if you cancelled at any other time.

poet123

Thanks I will wait, I will be submitting meter readings online to the new supplier, so if I overpay I will wait for the refund.

Swipe

I went ahead and cancelled my DD before I read these responses. My final bill will only be about £16 (146 units). My previous bill was only 3 weeks before final meter reading, so if I lose any DD discounts it'll be in the region of £1 so not too bothered. Good advice though, nonetheless.

Terrylw1

Swipe wrote: »

I went ahead and cancelled my DD before I read these responses. My final bill will only be about £16 (146 units). My previous bill was only 3 weeks before final meter reading, so if I lose any DD discounts it'll be in the region of £1 so not too bothered. Good advice though, nonetheless.

Yeah, this is where the inconvenience of DD's & change of supply times can be worse since you would prefer to have your money instead.

I guess it would only be a problem for someone much further into their quarterly/6 monthly bill cycle.