First Utility Offer

tesuhoha

Hi

I am on a fixed deal with First Utility and it is coming to an end soon. I have had the following email. Would you say this is a good deal. I haven't had any problems with them at all.

Sorry - edit. I don't seem able to paste the email but they are offering me a new fixed deal till January 2016 with a free smart meter and no exit fees. This is from the small print

* The iSave Fixed January 2016 is the cheapest 2016 fixed tariff at national average consumption. For OFGEMs national average consumption see below.

** You will receive a free electricity smart meter when you move to iSave Fixed January 2016 via this email. This offer expires on 31 January 2014.

Its also offering me a shorter fix till July 2015 which is even cheaper. This one seems more appealing to me because I don't fancy messing around getting a smart meter fixed. But is First Utility a good one to stay with? What about these Smart Meters - are they a good idea?

JamesMason_2

Hello

First of all, how long you want to fix for, or indeed not fix at all, is up to you

Also do a comparison

The "average national consumption" is a model of an "average" user. You may spend more or less, or consume a different proportion of gas and electricity.

So do a comparison on uSwitch to confirm you have the best deal.

Smart meters report back to base and allow you to better understand your consumption. They also make estimated reads a thing of the past so your monthly fixed payments are more accurate.

matelodave

Use your own consumption in kwh in a comparison site to see who is the cheapest.
Be careful when a supplier quotes the so-called annual average consumption. The figures have been reduced by Ofgem as they feel that people are using less because houses are better insulated. It used to be 16500kwh for gas, and now it's 13500kwh and electricity was 3500kw and is now 3100kwh.


So you really need to use your own consumption rather than some fictitious guesstimates - especially when you don't even know which ones the supplier is using.


It then depends how much you might save and how much aggravation you can deal with either by staying with FU or trying to swap. If you are happy with them and they are competitive then you might as well stay. I haven't seen any moans or whinges from people who are trying to leave them just from people who are moving to them or trying to get some sense out of them. However Scottish Power & N-power don't seem to be much better at the moment.

Consumerist

Be careful if you intend to install a smart meter at this stage. Last I heard, the spec for the smart meter roll-out wasn't completed so you could end up with a meter which will need to be replaced when the national roll-out starts.

matelodave

Does it really matter who's smart meter gets fitted as long as it doesn't cost you any extra.. If it works with your existing supplier then that's fine, If you swap suppliers, and they can't monitor it then it will revert to being a dumb meter. If it has to be changed in the future, so what?
There really isn't any reason why you shouldn't have one, all these strange spurious arguments against them just intrigue me.


I would like one as hopefully it would save me sending readings in every month and I'd be able to accurately monitor what I'm using from the comfort of my kitchen, rather than having to squint at the meter in a box on the wall outside in the rain. I'd like a smart water meter as well to save me grovelling in the mud to read mine.

Consumerist

matelodave wrote: »

There really isn't any reason why you shouldn't have one . . .

There are also security concerns with smart meters. It is true, however, that some people don't care about that. They are entitled to their opinion, of course.

So a smart meter may become a dumb meter; some people don't care about that either; mainly industry spokesmen, no doubt.

If you too don't care about these things then just just go ahead and have one installed. Who cares who pays? Only the customer, of course.

matelodave

I don't really think there's anyone sitting outside my house trying to work out whether I'm in or out based on my leccy consumption. They can usually see if someone's in by watching the lights go on or off (the time switch fools them there) or if the car is in the drive or not.


I decided not to joint the paranoid brigade years ago - life's too short to worry about what might be.

Consumerist

Replacing nearly-new meters with newer ones will, of course, help to keep some people in jobs. The cost will just be added to the suppliers network costs while the networks are laughing all the way to the bank. We, the consumer, will just have to stump up and in some cases go hungry or cold. Who cares? The energy industry certainly doesn't seem to.

tesuhoha

Thanks for all the replies and I have taken on board your advice. I have also just spent a couple of hours working out in detail kwh, usage and Martin's Cheap Energy comparison tariffs. It seems that we will be slightly better off by going for the Co-Operative top pick.

Therefore could anyone tell me when would be the right time to switch. I want to keep the current deal for as long as possible as it is cheaper than all the new ones. However it runs out on 4th March. Should I apply to switch now or wait until the end of February. One thing I don't want is to be lumbered with a month of paying First Utility's standard rates but neither do I want to pay an exit fee.

matelodave

Mid Feb is about right, it usually take 4-5 weeks, but to be sure you are better going onto FU's standard tariff for a week or so rather than having to pay an exit fee if you start to early and the switch happens before the end of your contract.