Next MSE Collective Switch Coming to an End

silvercar

So I switched at the time of the big switch, but to Sainsbury energy supplied by BG, as that was slightly lower than BG direct. So my current fix ends on 30 September.

If I recall that switch was not hassle free and SE aren't offering me anything worth staying for. So my choice now is to move to npower (also not a great feedback rating) or wait.......

Pedro1877

When I tried to negotiate with a BG customer service rep he hardly tried to persuade me to stay - that was on Thursday. He also told me that I would be subject to a £20 exit fee if I left before September12th. I queried this and quoted from my previous letter from BG. Still repeated his £20/Sept12th statement.



I have subsequently joined Npower for a year's online fixed deal through Top Cash Back where I receive £52.50 so with that included, my annual dual fee is only £40 more than the BG Oct 2017 collective fix - and only £2 pm more on my DD.


I chose Npower because I decided not to risk it with one of the many cheap unknown/no feedback companies who in fact were very similar after my cashback incuded. EDF were almost the same but I could only get £50 cashback.



Sorry you're leaving us

Hello Mr .....

We'll close your account on 18th September 2017, and your new supplier will automatically take over your supply at the same time – so you won't be left without any gas. If things change, we'll let you know.

Your Direct Debit

Please don’t cancel your Direct Debit until we’ve closed your account, as we might need to take a final payment or give you a refund. We’ll let you know before we do anything.

Why smart meters are better for you

Don’t forget, you get the following benefits with our smart meters – which you might lose if you leave us:

• You don’t need to send us meter readings, as they’re sent automatically
• Your bills are accurate – not estimated
• You can see what you’re spending on your energy, as you use it

If you’ve changed your mind

If you don’t know anything about this, or you’re having second thoughts, please give us a call straight away on 0800 980 6121*. If you use a textphone call 18001 0800 072 8626.

Thanks

Sarwjit Sambhi

Managing Director

Wind&Solar

British_Gas_Rep_Matt wrote: »

Hi Wind&Solar, I'm sorry my colleague wasn't clearer when explaining these payments. It sounds like my colleagues were referring to the Warm Homes Discount scheme, which provides qualifying customers with a payment of £140 to help with their energy bills. We're adding a further £76 to payments for the most vulnerable customers who automatically qualify for the scheme this year to offset the effect of the price increase.
You can check if you'd be eligible for the Warm Homes Discount Schem & we'll be open for new application later in September. Thanks, Matt

I don't know the name of what he was referring to as it wasn't mentioned by a specific name but after listening to the telephone conversation again he clearly stated that "only for senior customers" there would be £75 added to the electric account and £75 added to the gas account to reduce the impact of the increase and not "change your (my) circumstance" too much. When I queried it he repeated the same again. He said I should receive a letter confirming the 2x£75 credit in about 3-5 days.

I guess we'll see if/when the letter arrives!

fredandwilma

British_Gas_Rep_Matt wrote: »

Hi Wind&Solar, I'm sorry my colleague wasn't clearer when explaining these payments. It sounds like my colleagues were referring to the Warm Homes Discount scheme, which provides qualifying customers with a payment of £140 to help with their energy bills. We're adding a further £76 to payments for the most vulnerable customers who automatically qualify for the scheme this year to offset the effect of the price increase.
You can check if you'd be eligible for the Warm Homes Discount Scheme at https://www.britishgas.co.uk/energy/energy-saving/warm-home-discount.html & we'll be open for new application later in September. Thanks, Matt

Wind&Solar wrote: »

I don't know the name of what he was referring to as it wasn't mentioned by a specific name but after listening to the telephone conversation again he clearly stated that "only for senior customers" there would be £75 added to the electric account and £75 added to the gas account to reduce the impact of the increase and not "change your (my) circumstance" too much. When I queried it he repeated the same again. He said I should receive a letter confirming the 2x£75 credit in about 3-5 days.

I guess we'll see if/when the letter arrives!

According to this:-

https://www.britishgas.co.uk/media/r/1486/why_we_ve_had_to_raise_electricity_prices__but_ar

But there’s another very important group that we will ensure is protected from the price increase this winter: our most vulnerable customers. For more than 200,000 standard tariff customers in the core group who automatically receive the Warm Home Discount, British Gas will credit their account with £76 over the winter months. Vulnerable customers are a focus for Ofgem in its plans to improve the energy market, and we support that.

Note - It's for Standard Tariff Customers in the Core Group who automatically receive the WHD.


Also:-


https://www.britishgas.co.uk/business/terms-and-conditions/product

It's unclear whether it's exclusively for business customers, but it does state:-

The offer is open to new and existing customers bringing new meters to us. If we can’t offer a lower priced plan, we’ll match your initial renewal price and apply a £150 credit to your account by your third bill. Your renewal prices must be directly from your existing energy provider and not through a third party (such as a broker).

Perhaps the BG Rep can clarify?

This may be of use to someone.

MothballsWallet

Okay, so I went to the comparison sites yesterday, plugged in my annual consumption figures (Gas: 7,600 kWh/year, Electric: 2,450 kWh/year). I also went to the Cheap Energy Club (CEC) and did the same.

CEC came out with the best savings - £236/year with OneSelect

One of the other comparison sites even suggested npower would be cheapest for me (yeah, right, like I'd want to switch to them ever).

None of the other comparison sites' suggested savings estimates came close to £236.

I've even looked at separate suppliers on CEC, and that's fairly close as well:

Gas: save £129/year with Economy Energy
Electric: save £119/year with Iresa
Total: save £248/year

But there are notes of caution about both of them regarding an Ofgem investigation (for Economy Energy) and customer service issues (for Iresa).

I've also signed up to the MSE Big Collective Switch 8 - so I'll wait for that before I make my switch move.

[Deleted User]

@Mothballswallet
When doing a price comparison, please ignore the savings. The only number that matters is the TOTAL ANNUAL COST and that is what you need to compare against.
Savings come from a flawed OFGEM (energy regulator) method of calculating costs and savings.

MothballsWallet

gsmlnx wrote: »

@Mothballswallet
When doing a price comparison, please ignore the savings. The only number that matters is the TOTAL ANNUAL COST and that is what you need to compare against.
Savings come from a flawed OFGEM (energy regulator) method of calculating costs and savings.

Lots of things that Ofgem come up with are flawed

I'll redo the comparisons when I get some more time - but I can guarantee 1 thing - I won't be switching to npower, even if they are the cheapest

singhini

I've pent the last two days putting a spreadsheet together to work out what to do and I've concluded the following:


Current MSE dual fuel BG fix ending 3rd Oct = £660
Post 3rd October BG standard rate dual fuel = £960


Switch to "Bulb" Dual fuel (non fix) [after cashback] = £740
Switch to "Avro" Dual fuel (which is a 12 month fix) = £730


Switch gas & elect separately (Gas=Economy, Elec=IRESA) = £675 [gas has exit fees & is a 12 month fix, and companies have poorer feedback scores compared to both Bulb and Avro]


If nothing comes through with MSE in the next few weeks I will probably switch to Bulb as they are a 100% renewable energy company

hubb

I am in the same boat as yourself but bulb shows as 17th in my ranking ( and the rates are variable) showing a cost of £777 a year (compared to my current BG 3627 a year. Economy Energy comes out on top at £644 a year but doesn't state if fixed or variable.

Hopefully having all our very old reds renewed this summer and a thermostat will make a difference to our consumption.

I suppose as my tariff ends 3rd October I should be starting the switch process now as it takes around 6 weeks ?

Tharweb

hubb wrote: »

I suppose as my tariff ends 3rd October I should be starting the switch process now as it takes around 6 weeks ?

It needs to be done in the next few days. I'm waiting to see if they announce a new collective fix tomorrow and intend to make my decision then.