which Scottish power tarrif for low user

robti

Hi my son has just got the keys for a 1 bed flat (local authority housing) and after checking up both electricity and gas were with scottish power with the last tennant.

Now i understand that he has to call SP to register with them then later on he can look for an energy deal,

So question is when he calls to register and take over the supplies what tarrif should he sign up with as he will be a very low user and would want the cheapest till he moves in and gets to work out what he uses

Thanks

Robert

dogshome

The term 'Low User' has no precise definition, the best bet is that when registering with Scot. Power, he asks them what the Annual Gas/Elec Kwh useage was for the previous tenant and uses those figures to search the Switch sites.

His own true figures will of course be different, but at least the historic figures will reflect the Good/bad insulation values of the flat

robti

Thanks dogshome but will he not need to register with them right away and on what tarriff

Wywth

robti wrote: »

Hi my son has just got the keys for a 1 bed flat (local authority housing) and after checking up both electricity and gas were with scottish power with the last tennant.

Now i understand that he has to call SP to register with them then later on he can look for an energy deal,

So question is when he calls to register and take over the supplies what tarrif should he sign up with as he will be a very low user and would want the cheapest till he moves in and gets to work out what he uses

Thanks

Robert

Try this
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/you-switch-gas-electricity

If SP are not the best, then your son should initially choose the best SP tariff with no early exit fee, and switch

Pincher

Just tick "Low", as opposed to "Medium" or "High".

There is no "My son is so special he uses electricity like no one else tariff".

If you don't want to pay standing charge while it's vacant, pick one with NO STANDING CHARGE. The supplier will ignore your meter reading and estimate, so you end up paying standing charge any way, unless your are METICULOUS in providing the relevant readings for the date range you want to claim extreme low usage.

dogshome

The way it works for a new occupier, is that they must register with the current supplier on their move-in date, (Not before), and give the meter readings.

As a 'New' customer, all suppliers then put them on the 'Standard' tariff (Most Expensive) - It's possible to talk to that supplier when registering and immediately start on one of their better tariffs, BUT, that is only a better tariff from that supplier, which is not necessarily the best on the market - A 'Low user' could well be best off getting their Gas from one supplier and the Elec from another.

As soon as your son recieves the Welcome Pack from SP he is free to Switch supplier, a process that takes about 6 weeks, and as already posted, the year consumption figures from the previous tenant are the one's to use until he has built up his own consumption history over 12 months

robti

dogshome wrote: »

As a 'New' customer, all suppliers then put them on the 'Standard' tariff

Thanks that was the most important thing i was trying to find out

Wonder if prepyment would work out cheaper for a year till his energy useage is worked out( what if the last user was a very high user)

Robert

dogshome

The best deals from most suppliers require monthly payments by Direct Debit and Online billing.

If your son starts searching Switch sites on the day he moves in useing the consumption figures of the previous tenant, it could just be that he finds a deal from Scot Power that is, or near the best, in which case SP will change his tariff as soon as he asks whereas a Switch to another supplier will take 6 weeks.

Low/High User ?
Whilst the Elec is largely under the control of the occupier by switching everthing off as soon as possible, the gas is not, (unless that is he elects to freeze under a blanket 24/7 )
The Gas bill is hugely dependant on how well the property is insulated - If well insulated a 1 bed flat could use just 6,000 Gas Kwh a year Say £370 a year,
but poorly insulated with single glazed windows, solid brick outer walls and no insulation above the ceilings, the annual bill could double

Wywth

robti wrote: »

Thanks that was the most important thing i was trying to find out

Wonder if prepyment would work out cheaper for a year till his energy useage is worked out( what if the last user was a very high user)

Robert

Theres no need to wonder. If you consult a comparison site as I suggested earlier, then you'll be able to compare the annual costs with a credit meter and then compare to the annual costs with a PPM (2 comparisons required using same usage data)

I very much doubt you will find a better price with a PPM compared to the best price with a credit meter

matelodave

Teach him how to read the meters and to record his consumption on a spread sheet at least on a monthly basis (weekly is better) and to submit a meter reading to the energy supplier every month. He'll then have a good idea of what he's using and possibly be able to economise if he finds it's varying a lot. He will also know what his consumption is in Kw for when he wants to switch in the future.

It's not hard to do some preliminary investigation using some fictitious figures on the comparison sites ( eg 3000kw pa, 2500kw pa, 2000kpa) to get a feel for what its going to cost him and then he can compare his usage against his estimate and keep some control over it.

You should also take into account how he's going to heat the place, cook and produce hotwater, wash clothes etc.

Get him into good habits early and then he won't get big surprises at the end of the year. And warn him that leaving Computers, TVs, Sky boxes, video recorders, phone chargers, Xboxes etc sitting on standby all day and night will rack up his usage.

To help with a few estimates

I've been doing a few experiments (we are all electric) and even when we go away and just leave the Sky box on, fridge, freezer and broadband router we are using about 3.5kw a day = 1300kw a year. As soon as we are home, do a bit of cooking, heat water for washing/showers etc, watch a bit of Tv, have a few lights on and use the computers we find it ever so hard to get it much below 10kw a day = 3500Kw a year.
Using a washing machine & tumble dryer several times a week probably adds another 500kw so we find it difficult to use less than 4000kw a year just for ordinary living without any heating.

We heat using an Air Source Heat Pump which pushes our consumption up to 8-8500Kw a year (thats actual usage measured over the past three years) so even a "low user" would have to be very frugal to use less than 2500-3000Kw of electricity a year plus whatever it costs to heat the place