Am I doing the right thing in switching Elec supplier?

joe_bloggs1

Advise needed please rather urgently
(could not get on to post before)
My present contract with EDF for electricity ends end of September 2012
I am on Fixed s@ver V2 and have used 12533 units the last 12 months 1st Sept 2011 to 30th Aug 2012
29.34ppd standing charge (£107.09pa)
Unit charge 10.216ppu
Online discount 6% (-£83.25)
Not connected to gas discount £8.40pa
Which means I paid £1295.81 for the 12 months
Payment by direct debit variable per month
============
Using the online comparison sites using 12533 units and the supplier/tariff as above it suggests I will *save* £270 with an annual spend of £1435 using OVO
How is that a saving?
============
I signed up with Scottish Power as suggested by MSE to their Jan2014 contract on the 13th Sep, they mailed to confirm and say I have 7 days from the 15th (date of receipt) to cancel
Using their figures of 22.219ppu for the first 900 units then .1055ppu
No standing charge
Discount for online use -£10.50
At the same useage of 12533 = £1416.75
An increase of 9.3%
=============
So am I doing the right thing in switching?
===
Advise appreciated as I cannot see the wood for the proverbial trees

Wywth

joe_bloggs1 wrote: »

Advise needed please rather urgently
(could not get on to post before)
My present contract with EDF for electricity ends end of September 2012
I am on Fixed s@ver V2 and have used 12533 units the last 12 months 1st Sept 2011 to 30th Aug 2012
29.34ppd standing charge (£107.09pa)
Unit charge 10.216ppu
Online discount 6% (-£83.25)
Not connected to gas discount £8.40pa
Which means I paid £1295.81 for the 12 months
Payment by direct debit variable per month
============
Using the online comparison sites using 12533 units and the supplier/tariff as above it suggests I will *save* £270 with an annual spend of £1435 using OVO
How is that a saving?
============
I signed up with Scottish Power as suggested by MSE to their Jan2014 contract on the 13th Sep, they mailed to confirm and say I have 7 days from the 15th (date of receipt) to cancel
Using their figures of 22.219ppu for the first 900 units then .1055ppu
No standing charge
Discount for online use -£10.50
At the same useage of 12533 = £1416.75
An increase of 9.3%
=============
So am I doing the right thing in switching?
===
Advise appreciated as I cannot see the wood for the proverbial trees

What supply region (or first part of your postcode) are you in?
Which comparison site did you use?

The reason you may see a saving displayed, despite it being more expensive that what it cost last year, is that your cheap price tariff ends at the end of this month! You won't get the same price next year.

joe_bloggs1

Well you think you have posted everything and then find you forget the region :-(

We are in Cornwall, so SWEB and used that in the comparison sites

I fully understand that the contract comes to an end but what is the point of them giving a comparison to something you don't have? surely that is worthless and misleading
I want a comparison with what I am paying not with what I don't.
Based on my own calculations (as the comparison sites are useless) it shows I can switch to Scottish power and pay £121 more next year than I did this year, or stay with EDF on a variable rate which means I would end up paying £305 more at best and could be far more if the price goes up (which I suspect it will)

So in your opinion am I being logical in swapping to a fixed term contract ? even though it appears I will end up paying the 9% rise anyway

At least with this one there is no get out fee, so if the price goes down (ho-ho) I can swap again (my sides are hurting from laughing so much)

I used the sites suggested by MSE but had to go direct as they withdrew the offer from the comparison sites

Wywth wrote: »

What supply region (or first part of your postcode) are you in?
Which comparison site did you use?

The reason you may see a saving displayed, despite it being more expensive that what it cost last year, is that your cheap price tariff ends at the end of this month! You won't get the same price next year.

Stompa

FWIW if I plug those numbers into the simplyswitch website, the best it finds is
"npower - Electricity Online November 2013" at £1273.47, based on:

Standing charge(per day) = 30.7700 p
9.6000 p/kWh
Direct Debit Discount £ 42.00 Yearly

molerat

USwitch give you the option of comparing against your current tariff or the one you will be automatically switched to. Energy Helpline automatically use the new tariff.

joe_bloggs1

Hi, thanks for that however there must be something different in what you are entering as the cheapest using simplyswitch is £1435.05

Npower is £1459.73

At least simplyswitch gives a fairly close estimate of what I was paying at £1304.68 (I paid £1295)

I see Scottishpower has now added a new March 2014 fixed deal which raises it to £252 more than I have paid last 12 months

The one I signed up for is £120 more pa

Stompa wrote: »

FWIW if I plug those numbers into the simplyswitch website, the best it finds is
"npower - Electricity Online November 2013" at £1273.47, based on:

Standing charge(per day) = 30.7700 p
9.6000 p/kWh
Direct Debit Discount £ 42.00 Yearly

Stompa

joe_bloggs1 wrote: »

Hi, thanks for that however there must be something different in what you are entering as the cheapest using simplyswitch is £1435.05

Ah, my apologies. I was using a 'made up' Cornish post code, but unfortunately it looks as though it didn't exist. If I use a 'real' one I too get the £1435.05 I'm afraid.

joe_bloggs1

Ah that explains it then

I am afraid we are penalised down here for most things, we have the lowest wages yet some of the highest community charge, water, gas, electricity, petrol etc

The only ones I know higher are in the Highlands of Scotland

Stompa wrote: »

Ah, my apologies. I was using a 'made up' Cornish post code, but unfortunately it looks as though it didn't exist. If I use a 'real' one I too get the £1435.05 I'm afraid.

Wywth

As suspected, the savings quoted to you are based on the price you will pay if you do nothing.

i.e. using energyhelpline, being one of the sites MSE suggests, it says your annual cost if you do nothing will be £1706
It also offers the option that confirms, based on your existing tariff, that your annual cost would be £1304 ... but warns this deal is about to expire for you.
(the annual cost does not include the £8.40 additional discount for having no gas mains ... but this is specified in the detail)

The cheapest currently available deal for you is indeed Ovo fixed for a year at £1435 per year

The SP deal you appear to have secured (that is no longer available to new applicants) is £1417 per year.

joe_bloggs1

Thanks for your input

It seems I have done the right thing even if it does mean £120 higher bills :-(

Is it just me or do the power suppliers just sit around the table and decide whose turn it is this week to do a "deal" ie they collude to fix the prices artificially high to maximise profit

I see no great evidence of competition keeping prices down but rather a cartel in operation

Wywth wrote: »

As suspected, the savings quoted to you are based on the price you will pay if you do nothing.

i.e. using energyhelpline, being one of the sites MSE suggests, it says your annual cost if you do nothing will be £1706
It also offers the option that confirms, based on your existing tariff, that your annual cost would be £1304 ... but warns this deal is about to expire for you.
(the annual cost does not include the £8.40 additional discount for having no gas mains ... but this is specified in the detail)

The cheapest currently available deal for you is indeed Ovo fixed for a year at £1435 per year

The SP deal you appear to have secured (that is no longer available to new applicants) is £1417 per year.

Wywth

joe_bloggs1 wrote: »

...
Is it just me or do the power suppliers just sit around the table and decide whose turn it is this week to do a "deal" ie they collude to fix the prices artificially high to maximise profit

I see no great evidence of competition keeping prices down but rather a cartel in operation

That wasn't really the impression I got when most of the major, and a couple of the minor, suppliers were called to give evidence to parliament recently.

The boss of Ovo was one of those minor suppliers, and whilst he was hinting at something, he certainly didn't seem to include himself in whatever he was hinting at.
I would tend to agree, as the big suppliers didn't seem to like him anyway, complaining he as a small supplier didn't have to pay the huge liabilities the big suppliers were compelled to pay by the government. e.g. to meet CERT etc.

The EDF boss was quite open in that EDF were offering low prices to aggressively grow his retail business that was currently losing money. He said that if he can expand his existing customer base by offering those low prices, he could spread the overheads thinner, and so hopefully turn the current loss making business into a profitable one.
(I guess he is being at least partially successful as he had to admit that was the day he pulled his Blue+ tariff from the comparison sites, to ensure those who had already taken up the offer could be accomodated)