What date should I switch?

greencode

I'm currently on a fixed tariff contract that expires on the 31/3/2012. I've been in touch with moneysupermarket and they said to to switch to the new supplier no more than 12 days before the end of the contract just to be sure I don't have to pay an exit fee.

Is this correct? Or should I actually wait until it's full expired i.e. the 1/4/2012?

jalexa

greencode wrote: »

they said to to switch to the new supplier no more than 12 days before the end of the contract just to be sure I don't have to pay an exit fee.

Is this correct? Or should I actually wait until it's full expired i.e. the 1/4/2012?

This is entirely up to you depending on whether you want to gamble the early termination charge for a cost difference less than the charge.

When you switch online a cooling-off period begins on receipt of the e-mail or paper mail contract confirmation from the gaining supplier. On receipt of that you have a statutory minimum of 7 days (some suppliers have a 14 day cooling-off period) before the losing supplier is first notified. Typically transfers then take 4-6 weeks. The existing supplier is entitled to 28 days notice (but I do not know if the supplier can choose to waive that). Your risk.

Anyway are you certain your current supplier doesn't have a competitive tariff you could seemlessly transfer to?

So basically, up to you. The only thing which is definately fixed is 7 days minimum cooling-off.

greencode

Thanks for the reply. I'm currently with EDF and they don't have any comparable offers with Scottish Power and I would ultimately be saving around £130 based on the EDF standard tariff which is what EDF have opted to put me on to.

jalexa

greencode wrote: »

I'm currently with EDF and they don't have any comparable offers with Scottish Power and I would ultimately be saving around £130 based on the EDF standard tariff which is what EDF have opted to put me on to.

But that's not right. You are making a false comparison. The Edf standard tariff is just a temporary measure required by legislation. You can elect to transfer seemlessly to any Edf tariff, for example the current Fix to March 2013 tariff is broadly comparable with current Scottish Power offers.

Use a comparison website to see what is available. If you see a suitable Edf tariff, contact Edf directly.

greencode

I understand that it's not a like for like comparison, but I used moneysupermarket and they didn't come up with any EDF comparisons.

Looking at their current Fix to March 2013 blurb they say you can save up to £52 compared to their standard tariff so that's still way more expensive then the Scottish Power one.

That plus you also receive £30 by switching via the MSE site.

macman

Switch time is typically 4-5 weeks, so if your current lock-in ends on 31/3 then you can comnence the switch now-no way will you be on supply with the new supplier before mid-April.