Warning - First Utility now charging for tariff switching

C_Mababejive

Just checking my FU account, i see that if you look at other tariffs there is a click box to switch to this and also a tick box to indicate that you agree to pay £30 per product for switching,,so its now crystal clear.

Still though, does the 49 day limit apply? t should do as its a regulatory thing isnt it?

Spring/summer is on the way,,i can wait a while

bungeejump

FU are applying the £30 exits fee (£60 combined) to all tariffs, not just new ones, so if you have an existing tariff they will try to apply the fee if you move to a new tariff.

When I changed to my October 2016 tariff the email said,

If you change your mind don’t worry, you can cancel in the next 14 days by email, letter or telephone. Once your 14 day cooling off period has ended, you may be charged an early exit fee of £30 per fuel if you leave during your fixed period or if you switch supplier or switch to a variable rate tariff or a shorter fixed term tariff with us. These fees will be waived if a longer First Utility fixed price tariff is selected.



In the past there was no problem changing in the middle of a fixed term contract to a new fixed rate tariff with a later finishing date. I was told over the phone by FU that this was OK and there was no fee and I did this on several occasions. This is what I, and presumably FU, took “longer First Utility fixed price tariff” to mean, a later finishing date, so you were tied into buying energy from FU for longer.

However it seem that FU are now interpreting longer to refer to the length of the fix and not the date it finishes.

I changed from my October 2016 fix to the March 2017 fix on 27th January and as far as I could see there was nothing on the website to say there were new terms and conditions. When I saw in the email FU send me that they would charge me £60 to change to a later dated fix before March 2017 I phoned up to revert back to my original October 2016 tariff. Then a week later they sent me an email to say they were charging me £60. I phoned them up again and it look like the first person did not revert me so hopefully it has been done now which should cancel the £60 fee.

It seems like FU were happy to let people change tariff and lock them in for longer when energy prices were rising but now prices are falling they want to keep people locked in at the higher rate and stop them switching to lower priced tariffs for as long as possible.

It seems like FU is becoming one of the big 6 with the same approach. I’ve marked 49 days from the end of my fix in the diary and will be checking to see who has the best deal.