Best Tariffs for Second and Holiday Homes

frenchbantam

I apologise if this question has been asked somewhere else in the forum.

I have just bought a flat in the UK as a second home (I normally live in France). The property will be empty for about 9 months a year. Whilst I am not there the electricity will still be on but will only be powering very small items. I would be most grateful for anybody's advice about what sort of tariff I should be on and which is the best supplier. The property has electric underfloor heating and a electric water heater (these will both be OFF when the property is empty but are used when I am there). There is a gas fire in the lounge but it is never used.
Any suggestions would be most gratefully received.

Thanks in advance,

Mike

rabbitmumu

go to price comparison web sites and see who can supply to your property and what their charges are etc

Only suggestion is - do not go for those tariff with a standard daily charge.

Water bills - please make sure you tell your supplier there's no one living there so you won't be liable to the fixed charges (or daily charges if you have a water meter).

frenchbantam

Thanks rabbitmumu. I did visit the comparison sites but it looked like a bit of a minefield. Thanks for the info on the water.

Premier_2

You really do need to use a comparison site to check the best supplier (s) for gas & electric.
They really are not difficult. You should get to know how to use them for your main home too!
If you really can't work it out, there's usually a phone number on the site you can call and someone will do the work for you.

My guess is that for the holiday/second home, Ebico will be not far from the top of the list. No standing charges and no 2 tier pricing means they will probably be competitive for low users ... but do check on a comparison site.

Rules for water companies appear to vary by area, so whilst some water companies don't charge for empty properties, others do. Some will actually charge a standard fixed rate (so may be quite expensive) for empty properties, even when a meter is installed, so check the rules of your local water authority first.

frenchbantam

Thanks Premier, very useful and informative reply.

rabbitmumu

If you are not there 9 months in a year, i would suggest

1. No daily standing charge tariff

2. Online tariff only - coz' you don't want to have paperwork while you are away AND most importantly you don't want them to estimate your bills, and then you need to ring up and say it's not the case (they probably will then argue with you asking you lots of questions why you are in etc)...

But you will then need to submit your online readings monthly. I presume it won't be a problem for gas as it will be zero. But electricity you can either submit zero or a low reading or ask a neighbour to help if the meter is outside your property. They will probably check your meters once every 3-6 months so you don't want your online submission to be too far off from the actual meter readings.

3. When comparing your tariffs, read them carefully as some of those discounts may not even apply. E.g. British Gas has a duel fuel/ dd discount on units over a certain usage (i.e. Their Tier 2). If you are a low user and won't even use up the Tier 1 quota, then those discounts won't apply.

For those who offer £100 cash back (i.e. fixed and not a reduction of unit rates), check carefully if they apply to low / zero users like you.

4. Price comparison web sites - it really depends on whether you are in during summer or winter. And I don't know what kind of property you've got (house/ semi/ flat?) and will you be at home most of the time while you are in the UK?

Very rough guide based on my usage (2 bed flat, 2 people, most things are off during the day, combi boiler mostly off 8-9 months of the year apart from take a shower)

- electricity around 200 Kwh a month
- gas less than 50kwh a month during summer (coz' only less than 5 mins shower everyday), and winter with boiler on in the evening but temp set to 16-17c, 500 to 600kwh a month.

If you have a house/ temp set higher (not as stingy as us!)/ less well insulated property.. then adjust that accordingly.

5. whatever tariff you choose, there's no harm telling them in advance you are NOT going to be at the property. Then ring back again in a few days to ensure they have got that in their system. Coz' you don't want to trust any energy companies.

Premier_2

rabbitmumu wrote: »

...2. Online tariff only - coz' you don't want to have paperwork while you are away AND most importantly you don't want them to estimate your bills, ....

That's easily resolved by providing the supplier with a different mailing address to the supply address

Most unoccupied property insurance requirements are that the property is regularly visited/inspected - typically at least once per month. Whoever visits can obtain the meter readings and provide these to the supplier before a bill is produced to ensure more accurate billing. You have to supply meter readings whether it's an online account or not (assuming the meter is not externally available to a meter reader)
Actually many online tariffs now seem to rely on you providing your own meter readings - the meter reader only attending to meet licence requirements, once every two years.

Furthermore, if the supplier is made aware othat the property is predominantly unoccupied (or gets the idea from actual meter reading history) then they should estimate quite accurately anyway.