Can someone please help explain these figures?

JennyW_2

I'm with SE and have just received notification that my energy prices are increasing.

This is what's happening to my electricity prices:

Standing charge (pence per day) £14.09 (ex vat)
Standard energy unit (pence per kwh) £12.78 (ex vat)

I entered my yearly consumption figure into uswitch and they came up with Scottish power and this is there electricity figure:

First 900 charge at 23.734p
Remainder at 10.631

I'm a little confused because the figure is much higher but I don't understand standing charges. Can someone please help ? Thank you.

macman

Standing charge is a daily charge payable whether you use any power or not.
You are confusing SC's with first tier and second tier rates, a different thing.
But the SC's and tiers are not really relevant, if you use a comp site with your annual kWh consumption then it will tell you the total 12m cost-that's the only figure that matters. SC's or NSC's are a red herring, they make no overall difference unless you are a very low user.

JennyW_2

Ok, thanks. I understand now. I Still don't know whether to switch, it always scares me - better the devil you know and all that but I might feel better with a fixed deal until Dec 13.

macman

The SSE increase will soon be followed by the others. Unfortunately you've missed all the best fixes now.

JennyW_2

the comparison site is suggesting Scottish power fixed with annual saving of £98.

It's got to be worth doing?

victor2

Tariffs with a standing charge are perhaps a little easier to understand - you pay a fixed amount for having the service there and then have a single rate for all kWh's you use.
"Two tier" tariffs can be thought of a a standing charge and usage all at the second (lower) level. With a simple bit of arithmetic, you can work out what the effective standing charge would be to allow you to compare like with like.
However, as macman says, just let the comparison sites do the work for you, and look at your annual cost for your annual usage in kWh.

victor2

JennyW wrote: »

the comparison site is suggesting Scottish power fixed with annual saving of £98.

It's got to be worth doing?

The advantage of fixed tariffs is just that - the rate is fixed until the end of the contract. There is generally a penalty for leaving early, but the chances are that energy prices will have increased by then, and you'll be getting good rates. Fixed ones usually start out at a rate a bit higher than current variable tariffs, but if the comparison site says you'll make a saving, then give it serious thought.
IF prices were to fall during the contract, you could end up being out of pocket, but I've yet to see that happen over the entire duration of a contract, and if it falls so much, you can consider it might be worth taking the early termination penalty to switch away.

JennyW_2

Victor, I found this so looks like I could leave if I wasn't happy:

You can end your agreement(s) by switching supplier at any time without having to pay any cancellation charges

I've been with SE for a while a like their customer service, just not sure about SP? I never switched to EDF because of bad customer service.

victor2

Sounds like you can save money and still bale out at no extra cost if it doesn't work then. It doesn't look like their discounts are withheld until you complete a year either (at least one supplier does that). Just check that the comparison site is comparing the cost against your current tariff, and not a standard one.
I don't know about SP's customer service, but fully understand your concern about EDF!

Wywth

JennyW wrote: »

the comparison site is suggesting Scottish power fixed with annual saving of £98.

It's got to be worth doing?

£98 in your pocket or SSE's pocket.

The choice is yours ... I know which I'd choose.
You can probably get some cashback too if you were to switch.

macman

JennyW wrote: »

the comparison site is suggesting Scottish power fixed with annual saving of £98.

It's got to be worth doing?

Plus up to £42 cashback via Quidco of course...