Advice for an elderly man re: switching

agme28

On Monday, I am meeting a client at the local library (I volunteer for an information & advice support service) to help him compare energy tariffs online. I have been told he is elderly and has been with British Gas for years but feels he is being ripped off. I know how to find myself the best deals, but will it be possible to compare tariffs IF the gentleman does not have internet access or email address and is unlikely to opt for an online saver product. I have a personal login for Which? and MSE amongst others but need to put any details in as if I were the chap. Can you actually switch suppliers online if you don't plan to use an online plan? Thanks!

A.Penny.Saved

There are online tariffs and regular offline tariffs so even if you get his annual usage from his bills, you could probably enter them into the libraries internet computer and see which it recommends. Selecting offline tariffs only if that is all he is interested in.

He can then simply contact the company using the telephone and ask to be switched to the same tariff.

You might be able to sign him up online, getting a free email address to use for his sign up. That way he would get the cashback too. His bank details would need to be entered though so be aware of that. Online switches would need meter readings to be entered at the correct times, although this is not too time critical and can be done with maybe a couple of weeks leeway. Not supplying them does mean that final bills are messed up and need to be sorted out over the phone. It happened to me while I was switching, I forgot to enter the electric reading and got an inaccurate final bill which I had to get altered.

oldskoo1

I think he would need to stick to paper billing which may mean an offline only tariff.

I would ring him first and ask him to bring all his bills as you will just waste both your time. He needs a years worth.

Plus I would perhaps pop round and check his heating demands are operating most efficiently.

Check his thermostat he needs to be in a house heated to at least 21c for his assumed elderly age for health reasons.

Things you might want to check are only enabling radiators in rooms he lives in, the others on very low. Boiler stat correctly set, no drafts, nothing left turned on he doesn't need.

Good on you for helping him out and giving up your time. Great!

victor2

I helped out an elderly relative switch to an E.On fixed tariff last year. It wasn't an online only tariff, as although he has a computer, he isn't that happy doing business on it. He knew it wasn't the cheapest rate, but had been with Edf before and had difficulty providing his meter readings, plus got fed up trying to speak to them by phone.
Now E.On have fitted Smart meters, given him an energy monitor and he never has to supply readings. He's happy and runs around switching things off when the monitor shows high usage!

Consumerist

victor2 wrote: »

He's happy and runs around switching things off when the monitor shows high usage!

This probably generates more savings than the switch. Nice one. :T

agme28

Thanks everyone, that all makes sense. Unfortunately I have not been able to speak to the chap directly yet as protocol forbids it but the office have asked him to bring paperwork with him and if needs be, I can always meet him again if I need more details. I have written down my own usage and bill details for the last year to show him how easy it is to do. I was planning to head straight to the Uswitch site unless anyone knows of any other very simple comparison sites. I am even thinking of switching myself after looking into it all. Thanks!

Consumerist

agme28 wrote: »

. . . I was planning to head straight to the Uswitch site unless anyone knows of any other very simple comparison sites. . .

Firstly, I would suggest you ignore any quoted "savings". Actual savings depend on the current tariff used to compare against and this is open to error. It would be better to go by the annual cost of the tariff(s) you chose - select the cheapest tariff which meets your needs (e.g. online/paper billing, monthly/quarterly direct debit, etc.)

I find the UK Power comparison site easiest to get along with.

Use kWh consumption, rather than annual spend, for best results. You don't have to give an email address unless you want the results emailed to you.

Once you've got your tariff list, use the view details link with each tariff to get the full annual calculation of estimated energy costs.

Taiko

Is it not possible for you to manage the account beforehand? My gran has never owned or used a computer in her life, but I've switched her and get her to read the meters at the end of each month, and administer it for her, just printing off the bills.

victor2

agme28 wrote: »

Thanks everyone, that all makes sense. Unfortunately I have not been able to speak to the chap directly yet as protocol forbids it but the office have asked him to bring paperwork with him and if needs be, I can always meet him again if I need more details. I have written down my own usage and bill details for the last year to show him how easy it is to do. I was planning to head straight to the Uswitch site unless anyone knows of any other very simple comparison sites. I am even thinking of switching myself after looking into it all. Thanks!

uSwitch is as good as any. As Consumerist says though, use annual kWh for each fuel rather than actual cost to get more accurate ideas.
If you're only advising the client and not carrying out the switch for him, find those which don't require online management if he's not up to doing that, and just point him in their direction. Consider the cost of him phoning them as well.
If he's elderly and has been with BG for years, then he'll probably be more comfortable going to one of the big 6 suppliers.

agme28

Thankyou everyone

My meeting with the man went well, he wasn't overly old and had all the relevant details to hand so it was fairly simple to do a quick comparison online using his annual usage figures. He's been paying BG for gas on monthly direct debit but then paying his electricity on receipt of the bill to Scottish Electric so it appeared that he could save upto £160 if he switched to dual fuel with Coop Energy who get good reviews in Which? magazine.

He made the point that smaller companies like Coop might not offer the Warm Home Discount so I advised him to ring them as their website seemed to suggest they may offer their own option for this. He is coming back to us in a week's time.

Wywth

agme28 wrote: »

Thankyou everyone

My meeting with the man went well, he wasn't overly old and had all the relevant details to hand so it was fairly simple to do a quick comparison online using his annual usage figures. He's been paying BG for gas on monthly direct debit but then paying his electricity on receipt of the bill to Scottish Electric so it appeared that he could save upto £160 if he switched to dual fuel with Coop Energy who get good reviews in Which? magazine.

He made the point that smaller companies like Coop might not offer the Warm Home Discount so I advised him to ring them as their website seemed to suggest they may offer their own option for this. He is coming back to us in a week's time.

The co-op have announced they are incresaing their prices today for new customers!

http://www.cooperativeenergy.coop/2013/02/12/statement-from-co-operative-energy-on-price-increase-for-new-customers/

Back to the drawing board...