Avro Energy reviews: Give your feedback

MiniMum

victor2 wrote: »

I am in the process of switching away from Avro to a new supplier and will have about a week after the end of my Avro tariff until the new one started. I kind of assumed I would remain on the fixed tariff until the new one took over, as Avro were aware I was leaving before the end of the tariff. No great loss to me, but Avro have confirmed by email that I will be charged the extra days on their standard variable tariff. In the past, a supplier I was leaving charged me at the fixed rate of the tariff I had been on, even after it ended during the transfer.
Is this just a supplier "goodwill" that some choose to offer, or some sort of OFGEM mandate?

My experience with every one of my switches, is that if it's not complete by the date your fix ends, you go onto the Standard Variable for a period. I've done a lot of switching, and have never heard of a company keeping you on the fixed rate after the fixed rate period has ended, so it sound like the exception rather than the rule.

Consumerist

victor2 wrote: »

I am in the process of switching away from Avro to a new supplier and will have about a week after the end of my Avro tariff until the new one started. I kind of assumed I would remain on the fixed tariff until the new one took over, as Avro were aware I was leaving before the end of the tariff. No great loss to me, but Avro have confirmed by email that I will be charged the extra days on their standard variable tariff. In the past, a supplier I was leaving charged me at the fixed rate of the tariff I had been on, even after it ended during the transfer.
Is this just a supplier "goodwill" that some choose to offer, or some sort of OFGEM mandate?

Under the terms of their licence conditions, if you switch within (or after) the switching window, suppliers are required to keep you on your current tariff until your switch completes "within a reasonable period". Your new supplier must advise the old supplier about the switch request before 20 days after the end of your old contract for this to apply. - Hope that makes sense !

victor2

Consumerist wrote: »

Under the terms of their licence conditions, if you switch within (or after) the switching window, suppliers are required to keep you on your current tariff until your switch completes "within a reasonable period". Your new supplier must advise the old supplier about the switch request before 20 days after the end of your old contract for this to apply. - Hope that makes sense !

That's kind of what I thought, and did experience, but couldn't find any official looking document to refer to. I will search deeper. Any suggestions where to look?


Edit:
Found something in SLC 24 and have emailed Avro to see what they say.

rusty_frog

Just saw this on the MSE Energy Club site..............

"Important: Avro Energy has been threatened with a ban on accepting new customers by regulator Ofgem for a potential breach of the energy supply licence conditions"

Anything for customers to be concerned about?

Flt._Lt._Biggles

rusty_frog wrote: »

Just saw this on the MSE Energy Club site..............

"Important: Avro Energy has been threatened with a ban on accepting new customers by regulator Ofgem for a potential breach of the energy supply licence conditions"

Anything for customers to be concerned about?

No, not really.

The matter came about in March this year. It relates to Avro not having become a user of the DCC (it's what SMET2 meters will use to communicate to all the various suppliers, and presumably SMET1 meters eventually, if/when a promised upgrade is rolled out)

"Avro said it had not sought to avoid compliance and argued that the final order was not warranted, because there were mitigating circumstances. "
- presumably that SMET2 meters have only just started to be released, and that the govt deadline of 2020 to roll out smartmeters is going to be missed by years

"Avro offered to voluntarily impose the sales ban on itself if it did not achieve DCC User status before 26 May 2019 "
- So Ofgen told Avro to sign up as a DCC user by 25 July 2019 :cool:

Consumerist

victor2 wrote: »

That's kind of what I thought, and did experience, but couldn't find any official looking document to refer to. I will search deeper. Any suggestions where to look?
Edit:
Found something in SLC 24 and have emailed Avro to see what they say.

That's it.

See the section heading: Continuation of Fixed Term Supply Contract terms for interim period. SLC 24.9 onwards.

victor2

Consumerist wrote: »

That's it.

See the section heading: Continuation of Fixed Term Supply Contract terms for interim period. SLC 24.9 onwards.

Some useful ammunition there. Took them 6 days to respond to my email asking what rates they were going to charge at, will see how long it takes them to reply to this one! We're only talking about a few quid, but it's the principle - and I'm an ex-customer anyway!:)

Consumerist

rusty_frog wrote: »

Just saw this on the MSE Energy Club site..............
"Important: Avro Energy has been threatened with a ban on accepting new customers by regulator Ofgem for a potential breach of the energy supply licence conditions"
Anything for customers to be concerned about?

Mmm. That's open to question.

If Avro fails to start installing smart meters - and I saw no sign of it over the past year - and Ofgem bans them from taking on new customers then recent history with other suppliers teaches us that going bust could follow shortly after.

Chrishazle

With the switch away and staying on the previous fixed rate, Affect/octopus showed how it should be done as I'm switching from them to Avro. Noticed on my statement that they had transferred me onto their standard tariff when my fix ended 1 April when I had advised them I was switching away about 20th March, 1 quick phone call and they immediately put me back onto my previous fixed rate backdated to 1 April.

Consumerist

Chrishazle wrote: »

With the switch away and staying on the previous fixed rate, Affect/octopus showed how it should be done as I'm switching from them to Avro. Noticed on my statement that they had transferred me onto their standard tariff when my fix ended 1 April when I had advised them I was switching away about 20th March, 1 quick phone call and they immediately put me back onto my previous fixed rate backdated to 1 April.

But, I bet they get away with it most of the time.

Since they corrected the matter quickly by phone, it seems that they know about the requirement but choose to ignore it until they receive a complaint.