All homes to be put on cheapest energy deal?

[Deleted User]

At first I got excited when I saw this on the news ..... But then thought about the greed of the energy companies and I don't trust them so don't feel exited that I will be better off as they will just find a way to compensate for the new rules and still scr*w us for every penny they can get!

Wywth

Ed Davey has just told the BBC that these changes may not be complusory until 2014 ...

... when most existing deals will have expired.

MillicentBystander

It's a difficult one because it will probably mean the majority of customers will be paying less than they did before but us tariff tarts will be way worse off. Morally I think it's actually the right thing to do. The extra charged for standard tariff customers over online tariff customers has always been impossible to justify from an energy supplier relative cost POV and i think only the more deluded posters would disagree with this.

Cardew

Presumably it will be the end of the fixed/capped tariffs. They almost by definition are initially the most expensive tariffs.

I suspect firms like Ebico with their single tier/NSC tariff will be even more popular for very low consumption customers, holiday homes etc.

Some people shut off gas for the summer. If a daily service charge becomes compulsory, won't they just cancel their account instead and open another account for winter.

Toki

Agree with what people have said in here already, this won't be good for MSE people as it'll mean the end to the cheap tarriffs if this goes ahead. It may benefit the majority who can't be bothered, not savvy enough or are rich enough not to care, but will mean the people who take the time to research tarriffs will lose out, bad move for most of us!

Soubrette

I disagree, the less tariffs available, the less costs to administer for the company. The more transparency in the market, the easier it will be to compare between companies and thus greater competition. Greater competition should of course lead to lower prices.

MillicentBystander

One potential good thing to come out of this - the switching sites are going to suffer.

Wywth

Cardew wrote: »

Presumably it will be the end of the fixed/capped tariffs. They almost by definition are initially the most expensive tariffs.

I suspect firms like Ebico with their single tier/NSC tariff will be even more popular for very low consumption customers, holiday homes etc.

Some people shut off gas for the summer. If a daily service charge becomes compulsory, won't they just cancel their account instead and open another account for winter.

Until Ed Davey tells us what the proposal actually are, of course we are all guessing. But indications are that he is following the Ofgem recommendations to some extent. These were:

• Limit suppliers to four “core tariffs” per fuel. However, collective switching schemes will be able to negotiate bespoke prices.
• Require that there will be one standard variable rate tariff, and one fixed term fixed price tariff. These account for 85% of all customers, and will therefore be clear, simple and easily compared.
• Allow suppliers freedom to offer the remaining two tariff types as they wish, such as green tariffs, to preserve customers’ choices.
• Require that suppliers offer a single price for each of the four tariff types. As Ofgem set out, this requirement would not prohibit discounts for dual fuel or lower cost payment methods.
• Prohibit “dead” tariffs to ensure that no customers are left on poor value, out of date tariffs.

The question of Ebico being forced to introduce a standing charge has been asked previously on this site. One suggestion was that perhaps Ebico could apply a daily standing charge of 0p per day and then carry on as normal

You can't just cancel a supply account for gas. You would need to be disconnected for which a charge may apply. There will certainly be a huge charge to reconnect a few months later making such option unviable.

Wywth

MillicentBystander wrote: »

One potential good thing to come out of this - the switching sites are going to suffer.

How would that be a good thing? :huh:

grahamc2003

Wywth wrote: »

How would that be a good thing? :huh:

Because it would stop probably tens of millions of pounds leaking out of the industry - and of course that cash is currently added onto our bills.