First Utility or Co-op energy

nmjams

I'm looking to switch from Swalec.
current annual spend £905.42 dual fuel, single working man, semi detached house. seems high to me

Gone through a few comparison sites and first utility came up tops, saving £225 a year. the drawback is i don't know of anyone who has had dealings with them, online reviews seem quite negative

co-op show a saving of £149 a year, simple to understand tariff and gives me the option to pay on receipt of bill (which i prefer)

does anyone have any experience with either or both they could share?

speedy2003

hi ive been with the coop for over a year found customer service very good if you need advice.The coop are still the cheapest for me when you take into account every thing and the fact that they have never wanted to tie me into a contract like most of the others tells me alot.Its a shame the coop dont get more of a mention on here .

george1939

nmjams wrote: »

I'm looking to switch from Swalec.
current annual spend £905.42 dual fuel, single working man, semi detached house. seems high to me

Gone through a few comparison sites and first utility came up tops, saving £225 a year. the drawback is i don't know of anyone who has had dealings with them, online reviews seem quite negative

co-op show a saving of £149 a year, simple to understand tariff and gives me the option to pay on receipt of bill (which i prefer)

does anyone have any experience with either or both they could share?

Been with first utility since June and, like I received from N power they give an annual discount. Good online service, they remind you end of each month [email] to read meters and send them off. [ all the months details can be seen in detailed online] Should I phone them quick and friendly response very easy
The discount is more than I received with N power example
I'll receive this discount in full as long as my total spend for gas and electricity in the year exceeds £600. I understand the discount is accrued separately per fuel for each month., if total spend for standing charges and unit rates exceeds £600 in a 12 month period I will qualify for the discount.
[FONT=&quot][Up to £180 dual fuel discount][/FONT] I am happy with their service i'm on a good cheap fixed rate and a good bonus [discount] in the 13th month cannot be bad[/email]

digp

why would first utility need to remind you? they have smart meters.

macman

Lots of billing and CS issues with FU-just do a forum search.
A recent Which survey put them bottom among the smaller fry for service-bumping along the bottom with the Big 6.

george1939

digp wrote: »

why would first utility need to remind you? they have smart meters.

Because smart meters are not yet interchangeable between companies. I am at present not interested maybe next year the industry will sort it all out So I have at present declined their offer

george1939

macman wrote: »

Lots of billing and CS issues with FU-just do a forum search.
A recent Which survey put them bottom among the smaller fry for service-bumping along the bottom with the Big 6.

This may be so but it has not happened to me I am very happy how they so far are dealing with me You can only write has you find them not using second hand information Same with N power they were good to me even when I left I only left because First Utility was cheaper But I get an excellent service also with First Utility as others also do

Wywth

nmjams wrote: »

I'm looking to switch from Swalec.
current annual spend £905.42 dual fuel, single working man, semi detached house. seems high to me

Gone through a few comparison sites and first utility came up tops, saving £225 a year. the drawback is i don't know of anyone who has had dealings with them, online reviews seem quite negative

co-op show a saving of £149 a year, simple to understand tariff and gives me the option to pay on receipt of bill (which i prefer)

does anyone have any experience with either or both they could share?

If you want the cheapest deal, you will almost certainly need to pay monthly by direct debit.

For an annual saving of £76 over the co-op I would go with FU

But if you want to pay on receipt of bill, why not do a comparison based on that method of payment. Most comparison sites allow this (energyhelpline certainly does)

Berry23

digp wrote: »

why would first utility need to remind you? they have smart meters.

Wow - they've given you a smart meter???!! I've been with them a year now and though part of the deal was to have a smart meter - I'm still waiting. When I can actually get a response - usually takes about 3 months for a response to on online query - I get told different things. First off it was there was a delay because they had to change provider because their contractor had built up a backlog, wasn't doing the work properly and when FU found out they terminated the contract and had to find a new installer. I was told they were focusing on clearing the backlog in areas and to wait until the spring and they apologised.

By the summer still no smart meter so I contacted them again and after another month or so's wait I telephoned them and after an extremely long wait spoke to someone who told me there had been problems with the design of the smart meter and they were going to update it so I should wait a month or two for the new ones to be rolled out so I could benefit from a better design. About a month or so ago I received an email saying they were no longer installing smart meters because of government (new) guidance and so they were waiting for the next generation....

I've now accepted I'm best off assuming the smart meter will happen when I switch to a more organized provider. I find FU's standing charges really high as well and am not convinced the switch has saved me money.

[Deleted User]

I decided to change to coop energy and am in process. So far so good, I rang their customer services last week and the service was very clear, friendly and straightforward. I wanted an ethical co with no opt out fees. Good energy, I have been with them for two years, are also efficient, friendly and ethical but coop will save me £65 a year