Octopus Energy reviews: Give your feedback

Telegraph_Sam

"Agile is not about an artificial comparison, it's about load shifting. Can you get your usage during the peak hours down to zero? " The implication is that if the answer is no, or anywhere near no, then these clever tariffs are best avoided. Partly on account of the difficulty of making comparisons and instead guessing at the consequences of rates in the 20 p - 35 p region.

cattom

I was with octopus for a year, and I didn't find them any different to any other supplier. the only reason I left them was because I found a better deal. my new deal saves me £10 pcm, its with british gas who were in fact my original supplier before octopus. the only difference I'm anticipating with my new deal is the price.

niktheguru

Telegraph_Sam said:

"Agile is not about an artificial comparison, it's about load shifting. Can you get your usage during the peak hours down to zero? " The implication is that if the answer is no, or anywhere near no, then these clever tariffs are best avoided. Partly on account of the difficulty of making comparisons and instead guessing at the consequences of rates in the 20 p - 35 p region.

Or you could just try it for a few months and see if it actually saves you money. (remember no exit fees) Unless you have documentation of your kwh usage on an hourly basis already surely its going to be difficult to get an "accurate estimation" of whether you can save money on this compared to a fixed rate.
If you don't have an EV, or if you are someone who uses a lot of electricity during peak hours (so 4-7pm is when their kwh charges are highest) then its unlikely you'll save.

I agree there should be perhaps a calculator where it asks approx kwh usage during 4-7 and during other hours to give you a rough estimate, but given the prices change daily and hourly, thats all it will be, a rough estimate. Its not like a fixed rate or eco 7 where there are only 1 or 2 rates, so the maths there is much easier.

MWT

Telegraph_Sam said:

"Agile is not about an artificial comparison, it's about load shifting. Can you get your usage during the peak hours down to zero? " The implication is that if the answer is no, or anywhere near no, then these clever tariffs are best avoided.

I've already explained that we most certainly do not hit zero or anywhere close to is during the peak as we cook with electric during that time every day.

I'm certainly not going to try and convince you to move tariffs either, Agile is a beta product and it is not for everyone, I'm just happy it is there at all as I've saved a lot of money by using it.

Telegraph_Sam

What you put in bold is probably the key point. It could turn out to be a tail-wagging-dog exercise. And if it means investing in a time clock to first map one's energy consumption pattern then I'm minded to think that it's not worth the effort. I don't know if the much dreaded smart meters can do this with any degree of confidence, not being a smart man myself. I'm surprised that  Octopus themselves don't seem to offer a user-friendly online calculator - and indeed seem to be a bit hesitant in promoting these smart tariffs on their web site from what I can see.

MWT

Telegraph_Sam said:

I'm surprised that  Octopus themselves don't seem to offer a user-friendly online calculator - and indeed seem to be a bit hesitant in promoting these smart tariffs on their web site from what I can see.

It is a Beta product, not intended for everyone.

Attractive to the technophiles and especially those already looking for ways to 'go green' & reduce carbon etc.so the path to opting in is deliberately obscure for the moment.

It sounds a bit 'mystic' but this is one of those situations where you will know if you are ready for Agile, and from what you've posted so far I'd say this is not one for you at this time.

Telegraph_Sam

"Mystic" must be at least as good as "Agile" as far as naming the tariff goes. Based on the feedback that I have gleaned from this and other threads I'm inclined to think that your closing observation is close to the mark also. Not that I have any objection to mildly techno schemes but this particular one seems to be aimed at a rather select clique.

MWT

It's like that old joke about how many Californian's it takes to change a lightbulb?

Just one, but the bulb has got to want to change...

Agile is designed to encourage and reward changes in behaviour that reduce peak demand, so if you are not already at least heading in that direction it is probably not a good choice for now. 

Telegraph_Sam

Carrot or Stick???

Grumpy_chap

MWT said:

Agile is designed to encourage and reward changes in behaviour that reduce peak demand, so if you are not already at least heading in that direction it is probably not a good choice for now. 

These load-shifting tariffs will eventually become compulsory and punitive.  As they are for industry (known as TRIAD) - I know at least one user that faces charges of £70 / kWh during peak demand.  Yes - SEVENTY POUNDS - not a typo.  The trouble is, it has not encouraged load-shifting as intended but the site simply operate from the back-up generators during these hours.  Entirely counter-productive in terms of environmental impact, but it does reduce load on infra-structure so avoiding brown-outs.