Switching to npower

oldskoo1

Hi all
I've just found some cheaper deals with npower the cheapest of the big 6 and only marginally more expensive than the smaller white label networks.

I heard npower in general npower are not great and since I don't switch that much I just want to check I'm making the right move and have understood all the hidden charges that may exist.

I use £1,200 a year. This is around £78 a month on gas and £20 a month on electricity.

I'm on co-op dd pioneer (2014 I think)

I used uswitch to check deals and it gave me npower and the unit costs were quite a bit cheaper than co-op but the daily standing charge was higher. It calculated something called TCR I think it was a combination of unit cost with daily rate applied.

The tariff was npower 2016 price fix.

- can they change unit cost between now and jan 2016
- will I be put on a standard tariff in February 2016
- how long does it take to switch these days
- lets say it takes 6 weeks can I initiate a switch 6 weeks before the end of my contract of jan 2016 or do I have to wait until the very end in which case I could be paying big standard rates in the coldest months while the switch goes through (unless I stay and pick another tariff)
- anything else I should know? Is uswitch accurate in its predictions of saving nearly £200 a year? Anything else I should expect

Thanks!!

LaSynergie

I wondered similar because npower seems to be a lot cheaper than British Gas that I'm currently with and fixed to 2016 but I'm nervous because of the bad rep that they have for customer service. I also moved away from npower when I moved in here and I went to British Gas and I found them useless and it took months to transfer over!

oldskoo1

Yeah same here, I moved house 2 years ago and switched from npower who the last owners had.

£200 is a significant saving but I'm placing all my trust in uswitch being accurate in their saving estimation

Also like you say due to bad rep I'm wondering about wether they can increase the price and if I'm going to be stuck paying huge standard rates when switch in jan/feb 2016 as it will be my highest usage month so some of the savings could be eroded.

JJ_Egan

The tariff was npower 2016 price fix.

- can they change unit cost between now and jan 2016

NO its a fixed tariff.


- will I be put on a standard tariff in February 2016

YES unless you take out a new tariff.


- how long does it take to switch these days

4 to 6 weeks shorter switches starting to happen .

- lets say it takes 6 weeks can I initiate a switch 6 weeks before the end of my contract of jan 2016 or do I have to wait until the very end in which case

Not 6 weeks something like 40- 48 days before end of the contract you can start a switch .

Grumpfromcardiff

If you go with NPower, please make sure you check your readings and they bill you when they are supposed to.
I switched in Sept 2012 and did not get a final bill until 5 months later. When I checked it they had overcharged me £49 (they used an estimated reading even though I had given them an actual).
After ignoring my requests for a re-bill I complained to the ombudsman who not only sorted it out for me but made NPower send a letter of apology plus give me £100 in compensation (plus scrap the overcharge of £49).

oldskoo1

Thanks guys

I had issues with npower and incorrect final bills after switching from them when I moved into this house. They also didn't bill for something like 6 months. It was also higher! Dirty tactics.

I think I might avoid them and just switch to the fixed tariff with co op. To be honest they have gone downhill too since I joined. They also aren't the cheapest but never claimed to be. However they aren't sneaky.