Unhappy with eon!

footyguy

footboy wrote: »

Hi Footyguy, Gareth13

I too received the letter. I have two meters. One RHT. One Standard.

Previous to this offer from Eon, Eon would have made us pay to convert the two meters into one. This seemed grossly unfair. The government thought so too and there are rumblings going through parliament.

Suffice to say it looks as though Eon have taken the initiative to sort things out before the government make them do so hence the dropping of the RHT tariffs and the free smart meter installation.

When A Cheaper Rate Isn't Really Cheaper
For me using the heating system made no sense. Yes, it was a cheaper rate BUT I had to heat up a single 10KwH storage heater overnight which would then provide heat IF we needed it via a hot air system.

Having the heating on the system more than doubled my bills because I was charging and being charged for electric I did not use. Then when I used it, of course, it used a fan on peak rate to push the air around the house.

I worked out that I could have a 2Kw fan heater on full for 24 hours before it would have made sense to use the RHT 'cheaper' rate. Suffice to say I cut my bills by getting 2x 2Kw adjustable thermostat controlled fan heaters for £14 each. I cut my KwH usage in half overnight.

I am interested to see what the government announces. There may be some way to claim compensation for years past where we were told it was cheaper when actually the bottom line made things more expensive. We will see.

Standing Charge Considerations If Switching One or Two Meters
I didn't want a Smart Meter but any other supplier would have to charge a standing charge per meter although some may charge 1.5x and maybe others something different again. This still would undercut the rate Eon have moved us onto.

If you have two meters, having been moved on to a standard tariff you can still switch, if you wish, using a comparison service. These usually ask for one MPAN number - that is one meter reference, however, the two suppliers I have been in touch with say this is fine as long as you email the other number to them after initiating the switch. So, you can still get cashback and still switch two meters to another supplier - best check with any supplier you may wish to switch to before you initiate the switch though.

Personally, I am having Eon install the smart meter which replaces the two meters to avoid extra standing charge costs when switching and will use the https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub to switch supplier.

Compare a years KwH usage to see if a standard tariff elsewhere will save you money
Your situation may be different. It may work in your favour, with monitored energy use to be on Economy7 or Economy10 to which your Smart Meter can be configured - these maintain different, less expensive rates, however, peak rates are when the majority of the population would use the electric.

Switching Economy7, Economy10, Standard
If you have a single smart meter installed you will be able to choose to have it set up to a Standard Single Tariff, Eco7 or Eco10. There are limited supplier options for switching Eco7 and Eco10 tariffs - search MSE for the relevant pages. If you choose the single tariff you will pretty much be able to switch to anyone.

You can always switch between the Economy and Standard tariffs at a later date. The Smart Meter will simply be configured to the new tariff. This future proofs things - especially good for anyone moving into the accommodation.

My advice is take your combined KwH usage over the past year, adjust for any variance you predict in the coming year ie number of people in the house and their energy usage, and put that through the comparison web sites. The savings may be wrong - you will know what you paid for the year in question, but the total will show you whether or not you can save on the standard tariff.

Smart Meters - ask to be set to report monthly - Eon will not offer this you will have to ask.
A further feature of the Smart Meter is that you can ask for it to be set to provide readings at a lower interval than the one Eon's script states for you to agree to - half hourly. I have had mine set to inform them of usage monthly.

I do believe you can have the feature turned off altogether where upon you would simply provide your own meter readings.

No Exit Fees
The switch to the new tariff involves no exit fees so it is good to see Eon really are finally releasing their hold on RHT customers and meeting their obligations.


I hope all that helps!

All the best!
:beer:

I think you will have to point me to the pages to which you refer.

Economy 7 is widely accepted . Almost every supplier offers customers with an E7 meter E7 - you will struggle to find one that does not (but I think the odd small one may exist)

I accept the situation is different for the relatively few that are on E10.

footyguy

vivatifosi wrote: »

I have had one of the letters re my old E10 tariff too. My plan is to switch, however if I do, I want to be sure that EOn aren't just the first out of the blocks, and that my new supplier won't do the same. I live in a house, E7 would not be a solution here.

Do not attempt to switch supplier with a legacy tariff/metering.

Attempts to do so invariably end in tears.

footyguy

tom44london wrote: »

I have been with EON for >15 years now (used to be called POWERGEN). I live in a 1 bedroom flat in NW London, with storage heater radiator.
Also got a letter today from EON, telling me that on 17th September my ECONOMY10 tariff would be replaced by EnergyPlan - without any off peak tariff (usually half the full price).

But I can always have a Smartmeter installed, and keep - surprise, surprise - an Economy10 tariff if I chose too.

My questions to any EON representative :

1/ Why kill the Economy10 plan yet offer something similar in the same letter?

2/ Why do I have to call the EON team to get tariff details - why not include them in the letter addressed to me?

3/ is the Smartmeter linked to Direct debit? As the moment I pay my bill every month when it arrives. I am concerned DD is a licence for EON to pinch any money they want from my bank account.

Very worried that the letter from EON comes across as : "you have to have Smartmeter installed otherwise you will start being through the nose".

See the links eaerlier in this thread.

Good luck!

tom44london

Seen those threads already - thank you ; but they are extremely vague.

tom44london

Right, just been on the phone with EON, who don't support Heatwave anymore.
I was told that they have to come and change my meter otherwise they can not move me to another tariff.
This sounds very dubious as my meter was installed 5 years ago and is working fine.
I will be looking for some advice on this.

vivatifosi

footyguy wrote: »

Do not attempt to switch supplier with a legacy tariff/metering.

Attempts to do so invariably end in tears.

Why not? I can't stay on the tariff I'm on as it's ending. The smart meter E10 with E On is more expensive. If I'm being forced off - which I am given the letter - I may as well shop the market first.

tom44london

I am in the same situation as Vivatifosi.
My current Economy10 tariff is 8.6p offpeak and 16.9 at peak.
If I go unrestrcited with EON, everything will be at 16.5p = an increase of +30%!
EON are offering me a 'new' Economy 10 plan (with new meter), with 10.6p offpeak, and 19.2 at peak = an increase of +21%!
I am talking to the Citizen Advice about this.

Wolf3

Do not attempt to switch supplier with a legacy tariff/metering.

Attempts to do so invariably end in tears.

Why not? I can't stay on the tariff I'm on as it's ending. The smart meter E10 with E On is more expensive. If I'm being forced off - which I am given the letter - I may as well shop the market first.

Legacy tariffs and their meters can only be supplied by the suppliers for your area for a two rate tariff, no other suppliers can support the metering type and will only charge you at their standard rate for all of your electric usage.

The Legacy meters are not being manufactured anymore for the last 2 years, so will not be replaced like for like when the current meters reach the end of their life cycle. Therefore the work being done is forcing your hand but necessary as suppliers have to open your supply up to the market.

It ends in tears usually as the new supplier will only transfer the primary MPAN supply over to themselves initially, then realise their mistake and have to send it back, creating more hassle and more expense for you and your supplier.

vivatifosi

Wolf3 wrote: »

Legacy tariffs and their meters can only be supplied by the suppliers for your area for a two rate tariff, no other suppliers can support the metering type and will only charge you at their standard rate for all of your electric usage.

The Legacy meters are not being manufactured anymore for the last 2 years, so will not be replaced like for like when the current meters reach the end of their life cycle. Therefore the work being done is forcing your hand but necessary as suppliers have to open your supply up to the market.

It ends in tears usually as the new supplier will only transfer the primary MPAN supply over to themselves initially, then realise their mistake and have to send it back, creating more hassle and more expense for you and your supplier.

Thanks Wolf3.

What then is the best solution if we don't agree to E On putting our prices up by over 20%? If the market is going to move quickly, I don't have a problem changing supplier a week or so later, but as we're heading into autumn then, don't want to be paying over the odds for long. I don't mind paying for a new meter, but object to being stiffed by a virtual monopoly.

Wolf3

Personally, the best solution would be to chose the meter type thats right for your property. Either E7 or E10, the newer meters only use a single MPAN/Supply number which frees you up to the rest of the market. Then you can take a look at the market prices for those tariffs that fit your meter. I would also note, not to start the transfer process before the new meter has been fitted, as this will automatically cancel the appointment booking.