Switch and save.... my result was switch and pay more!!

Skintandstressed

I've just gone through the comparison site regime, looking at energy prices etc in the aim of saving some money, my "best deal" to switch came up with a saving of -£302.99 now at first I thought that meant I would be saving £300 if I switched...

Luckily I had my last bill to hand and compared the unit prices and it turns out switching would actually cost me £300 - go figure?!

Oh well, no cash back for me, but feel better being safe in the knowledge that I really am already on the best deal that I could be :j:T

HappyMJ

That's a massive discount to the current best rate. What is your current supplier and tariff and usage per year in kWh? Normally most tariffs aren't that far off each other. If you fixed on a deal a few years back does your deal have an expiry date coming up soon? Maybe the comparison site is still using the current deal pricing and your deal when it expires might automatically switch to a standard tariff. That might be sooner than you think.....Some of them expire end of Jan 2012...

jalexa

Skintandstressed wrote: »

Luckily I had my last bill to hand and compared the unit prices and it turns out switching would actually cost me £300 - go figure?!

That's unusual and may not be right or a misunderstanding. Which comparison website was that? Certainly "comparing unit prices" in isolation is not accurate. You need to trust the comparison website headline cost for your typical annual consumption.

I suggest you try at least three comparison websites. I suggest uSwitch, TheEnergyShop and your choice. They *should* all agree.

Note that the comparison does not calculate the "cost" of leaving an existing tariff before either maturity and/or "deferred discount":eek: is earned.

Skintandstressed

I used simply switch - linked to MSE.

I entered my existing tariff (NPower online 21) and went through the motions etc...
I really did think I had misunderstood at first and thought that it could not possibly be right.

The simply switch site then allows you to view the rates, it opens up a page where it shows your current rates - which I checked against my latest bill and they were correct. It also shows the new rates on the tariffs offered, and these were substantially higher.

I use a lot more electricity than gas, 10,700 kwh in electric and 200 kwh in gas per year. (By means of explanation, the only gas that I use is for cooking and my heating (only necessary in the colder months) is on oil filled electric heaters - I know this is the most expensive form of heating, but I seriously cannot afford a new boiler!)

Additionally the direct debit discounts were not as high as what I currently receive.

StormyNight_2

you should tell your company you're thinking of switching may be their retention department can give you a better deal?

Skintandstressed

Thanks, worth a try StormyNight and that's a tactic that I intend to use tomorrow with Orange whilst sorting out my mobile.
I think I'll hang fire on the gas and electric until I do my meter reads tomorrow and see if they owe me any dosh... last bill (Oct-11) said I was £400 in credit but I use a hell of a lot over winter, but as the saying goes... every little helps!

HappyMJ

Skintandstressed wrote: »

I used simply switch - linked to MSE.

I entered my existing tariff (NPower online 21) and went through the motions etc...
I really did think I had misunderstood at first and thought that it could not possibly be right.

The simply switch site then allows you to view the rates, it opens up a page where it shows your current rates - which I checked against my latest bill and they were correct. It also shows the new rates on the tariffs offered, and these were substantially higher.

I use a lot more electricity than gas, 10,700 kwh in electric and 200 kwh in gas per year. (By means of explanation, the only gas that I use is for cooking and my heating (only necessary in the colder months) is on oil filled electric heaters - I know this is the most expensive form of heating, but I seriously cannot afford a new boiler!)

Additionally the direct debit discounts were not as high as what I currently receive.

Npower SOL 21 was a good tariff. It finishes on the 31st March 2012 so look at switching around mid-march and when the comparison site you use asks for your existing tariff information use the Go-Save tariff which is Npower's revert to standard tariff. Make sure you only enter annual kWh usage information for an accurate result. Monthly direct debit will not be accurate.

Skintandstressed

Thanks HappyMJ, really useful to know that this tariff ends in March.

I did only enter the annual usage, because I'm fully aware that the DD amounts mean naff all in comparison.

I've set myself up a reminder to look at it for mid-March and I think I will also hold back on calling their retention dept until then.

new2012

-£302.99

I think you all missed the - (minus sign) in front of the -£302.99

jalexa

Skintandstressed wrote: »

I use a lot more electricity than gas, 10,700 kwh in electric and 200 kwh in gas per year.

TheEnergyShop refused to calculate 200kWhr/year of gas. uSwitch calculated gas costs as -£37. Your exceptionally low consumption has "defeated" the comparison. I doubt Simply Switch was any better but I decline to use a service intent on harvesting name and address data.

The issue is that there is a "fixed" deferred discount:eek: for gas of £52.50 on your current tariff, i.e. more than the cost of your gas. This issue of "free gas" has been discussed here (or elsewhere) before but I cannot recall the outcome. Perhaps you could post how NPower handles that. I cannot see their T&Cs stupidly offering "free" gas.

macman

A saving of minus means that that tariff will cost you more.
If 200kWH of gas confuses the sites, I suggest you opt for the cheapest NSC tariff for gas, and do an electricity only comp site check.
What you are spending on electric heating in a couple of years will be more than the cost of a new boiler-electric Standard rate heating is 3-4 times more expensive than gas.
Edit: energyhelpline will accept those figures for a dual fuel calculation: for my area it shows that you are already on the cheapest tariff (unless you have the option of switching to an NSC gas tariff) by about £244. Don't rock the boat.