Gas/Lecky switch help needed!

gavvallance

Hi
as per the warning in my last MSE newsletter I want to do a utility switch.
I only last winter moved house, and inherited tariffs which I left alone as had other things on my plate. now I have got to switch as the winter is coming, the problem is, when I go to the comparison websites it asks me what tariffs I currently use and the tariffs shown on my bills are not in the drop down menu to be selected.
Can anyone advise? I am sure it will be worth me switching whatever, but just wanted to maximise savings by doing everything correctly.

I am with EDF for Gas and Electricity.

Gas - Dual fuel gas tariff - kwh split first at 7.00 p next at 2.891 p

Lecky - Economy 7 Electricity tariff - Day first 22.83p next 10.95p Night 4.710p

I do not use electricity in an economy 7 style and have no intentions of starting to. Also get Direct Debit discount and Nectar points.

Help gratefully recieved :T

penrhyn

Put your annual consumption figures (in Kwh) into a comparison site and choose the cheapest that meets you criteria.

gavvallance

ok will try that thanks

Airmike23

You're on their standard rates and don't quote yourself as having economy 7 on your electric, it costs you more as you will not use enough in the 7 hour nigtht read (BST 1-8am GMT 12-7am) to make it worth your while, does not require a meter change just add the day and night together to get total quarterly consumption, all power companies charge a primary and secondary unit rate:
British Gas charge 125KWh electric at primary rate before all other units charged at secondary.
EDF 225 per quarter primary all other units used charged at secondary. (some tariffs have a standing charge which is a pence per day amount)
Eon 225kwh per quarter before secondary charges applied to reast of consumption
Npower 192KWh a quarter before paying rest of consumption on secondary rates
Scottish Power 225kwh a quarter (some tariffs have a standing charge which is a pence per day amount)
Scottish and Southern electric if you live in the former SWALEC/SOUTHERN/SCOTTISH HYDRO electric board areas 364kwh at the primary rate if you live outside those areas 225kwh a quarter

You sound like you will live somewhere down south where EDF is the host supplier, and one of the dearer providers.

Terrylw1

If you are not benefitting from E7 pricing, you do need a meter change or if the meter supports it, a Profile Class change. The latter just means you get a 2 rate bill on 1 unit price so it work the same as a 1 rate meter. However, not all meters support this. If you are not using E7, you will have no storage heating wired to your off peak circuit so your night rate is just powering other appliances that you use as standard.

Don't let any Supplier start adding day & night units together to get a final bill. Insist they change the meter or the Profile Class (if supported). If you don't, you will just have lots of billing problems and when you switch you will just end up back on E7 anyway as this adding units together issue is non compliant.

So, look at your pattern of usage and determine if you benefit from standard rates rather than E7. If you want the meter changed though, it's often easier with the current Supplier as long as you don't lose any current deal benefits in the process.

Airmike23

Why would a power company pay the cost of a cosmetic meter change when an e7 meter reads no more or less electric than an unrestricted meter. What you have put is taking the responsibility and the choice out of the customers hands. I work in the industry and it is entirely feasible to quote and take on an e7 meter on unrestricted tariffs. You are correct that potentially when the customer changes supplier, the new supplier may default to offering e7 rates to the customer, but via a comparison site you have the option as to whether you opt for e7 meter quotes or not, and if you speak with an energy company when joining them you can inform them that you do not want e7. As I mentioned the majority of folks who have an e7 meter but gas does their heat and hot water, will benefit from paying e7 rates.

Terrylw1

Airmike23 wrote: »

Why would a power company pay the cost of a cosmetic meter change when an e7 meter reads no more or less electric than an unrestricted meter. What you have put is taking the responsibility and the choice out of the customers hands. I work in the industry and it is entirely feasible to quote and take on an e7 meter on unrestricted tariffs. You are correct that potentially when the customer changes supplier, the new supplier may default to offering e7 rates to the customer, but via a comparison site you have the option as to whether you opt for e7 meter quotes or not, and if you speak with an energy company when joining them you can inform them that you do not want e7. As I mentioned the majority of folks who have an e7 meter but gas does their heat and hot water, will benefit from paying e7 rates.

Sorry, thats not what it says in the Balancing & Settlements Code which all Suppliers are part of.

If you use E7 but want to convert to standard, you can change from a Profile Class of 02 to 01 only where the Market Domain Data supports it. In the case of many meters, they will not support 01 & 02 which means that a meter change at site must be actioned to be compliant.

Whillst it may be possible to do it in a billing system, it's not the agreed process that Suppliers are supposed to follow.

Whether you are PC 01 or 02 governs how Suppliers pay their settlement charges to Distributors. By making cosmetic changes to tariff where not supported by MDD combinations, they are admitting to adding incorrect settlement charges into the industry which is a contravention of their signing onto the BSC.

Airmike23 wrote: »

You are correct that potentially when the customer changes supplier, the new supplier may default to offering e7 rates to the customer

This is the result, the customers meter does not support the PC change option. Then the customer spends time arguing with a compliant Supplier over the mistakes of the previous one. Comparison sites can't account for Supplier non compliances but staff should not be allowing customers onto tariffs they know will come unstuck in the billing cycle, which is just poor process.