EON Electric Heatwise Tariff - Need Your Help!

gilesdavies

Hi Guys

I really need your help here, I know very little about this tariff from EON... I want to know how we stand!

I was visiting my mum at the weekend, and asked me to help her with some letters she had got from her energy provider... My mum bumped into a dreaded salesman in the supermarket (think he was from Scottish Power) offering my mum cheaper electric than EON who she is with now... Personally I would do research before ever switching provider and not do it with some salesman.

The salesman did seem to do his job correct, asking my mum about her current tariff and if she has gas and electric, etc... So don't really have an issue with Scottish Power or the salesman.

As my mum wasn't 100% sure of her tariff and only has electric, the salesman rightly assumed she had Economy 7 (which I think my mum qlso though she was on). They offered her a fixed price tariff which is what really caught her attention and would give her some piece of mind for the next two to three years. However when the transfer started to go through, the transfer request was rejected... Scottish Power don't support the meter my mum has, as it has five rates, and the tariff is linked to this meter are unique to EON only in the UK.

I called EON on my mum's behalf and they confirmed this tariff. I asked about switching and the person on the phone thought it would not be possible because of the meter and unique tariff. I asked her about if EON could offer her a fixed tariff and they that declined too. Confirming this meter only has the one price plan available called Heatwise and offer no capped or fixed rate plans. As my mum is over 65, I asked if they offered any concessions in this area and again was told no.

After coming off the phone, I thought I would check their website, and are offering standard and economy 7 tariff customers numerous plans, with discounted rates, fixed, capped and an Age Concern tariffs. It seems the tariff my mum is on, is a "Legacy tariff" from the old days of when East Midlands Electricity were the default provider and was only offered in this region... Over time EON are now the owners of the old East Midlands Electricity and if no one has ever switched in this region, this is the provider you will be with.

My mum had to have a new meter installed about a year ago, as the old one was faulty, and at the time was never offered an option to go over to Economy 7 and just installed a meter that fits with the existing tariff.

I called EON back and was basically advised this was the plan my mum is on and has no choice but to stay on it, and as this new meter is not faulty, they have absolutely no obligation to replace it and they only replace it like for like, not with an economy 7 meter.

As I was there to see my mum for a catch up and not there to talk about energy providers, after about half an hour we moved on. But now I am home, and given this more thought, I am actually quite angry about the situation and feel like EON have my mum bent over a barrel. While I am about to enjoy a winter with fixed rate tariffs from M&S Energy and can switch whenever I like... My mum who is far more vulnerable and on a fixed income is at the mercy on EON, and any price increases they might impose on her and no way of switching.

No doubt EON will have got there legal department to ensure everything they are doing is water tight and ticking the all the boxes with the energy watchdog.

BUT is there anything I can do? Surely while the rest of the UK's energy consumers are free to switch providers when they want, how can Heatwise customers be exempt from this?!

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

Essentially, no, there is nothing you can do.

These legacy tariffs (Heatwise, Economy10) are a huge pain. Is there mains gas in the area?

st999

Search the forums for information about the heatwise tariff.

If she wanted to come off it she would have to get her house rewired so that she was using all her heating and hot water on a single tariff.

Not Eons fault that her house is wired like it is.

st999

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/62514211#Comment_62514211

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi gilesdavies

Hope the link st999 posted to one of my earlier Heatwise posts has been of help (thanks st999).

What I posted previously is still very much the situation. We do only have the one Heatwise tariff.

The tariffs listed on our website all relate to conventional single rate and Economy 7 meters.

It's possible to change the meter to take advantage of these tariffs and those available with other suppliers. However, as I posted previously, because of the way Heatwise meters are wired into the household circuits, changing it may have implications for your mum's heating.

This is why I always recommend asking a qualified approved electrician to check over the set up first.

For now, it may be best to make sure your mum's taking full advantage of the cheaper off peak periods, particularly during the night period when all electricity is charged at the off peak rates.

Hope this is of interest.

Malc

macman

If he didn't know what tariff she was on, how could he possibly 'know' that he could save her money? All he could do was offer her a lower initial DD in order to secure his sales commission. And then a few months later, a big catch-up bill and a much higher DD is the result.
Tell her never to sign up via a sales agent. Even if it were cheaper, she's giving away the commission that she could keep for herself using a comp site and a cashback site..

gilesdavies

Thank you for the reply Malc and everyone else, much appreciated...

If it is possible for customers

Im not in anyway blaming EON for the way my mum's house is wired, but what I am very much annoyed about is how in my opinion EON are exploiting their position as the sole provider of this tariff!

Surely they could at least offer customers on this tariff some sort of fixed rate plan?! But as we all know the provider has absolutely no need to, as they providers can go nowhere else.

Is it only houses in the former East Midlands Electricity Board area that have houses with a unique 5 rate meter?

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi gilesdavies

Sorry for the late reply. Been out of the office recently.

Heatwise is only available in the East Midlands electricity region. However, there are different variations of multi-rate meters available in other regions.

This type of metering was developed mainly for all electric properties. The aim was to provide cheaper electricity at certain times for heating/water heating purposes to properties unable to take advantage of cheaper gas prices to heat their homes.

Installation of this type of set up, though, was at the request of the original property builder/developer.

Hope this gives you a bit more detail. Give me a shout if you need any more info as will be happy to help.

Malc

Bark01

For some reason EDF support heatwise but only in the East Midlands region. A link to the rate card is below. Google is always your friend!

Not sure what the E.on prices are so don't know if EDF are competitive!

http://www.edfenergy.com/products-services/for-your-home/documents/product-terms/Time-of-use-tariff.pdf