Outfox the Market reviews: add your feedback

boliston

HighfieldHouse wrote: »

......

Today I looked at Pure Planet, who appear to be slightly more expensive per kWh for electricity but cheaper gas. Their membership fee is higher at £8.50 v £7.51 that I'm paying OTM. Comparing estimated usage over the whole year, Pure Planet are cheaper for me so I'm inclined to jump ship only having been with OTM for less than 6 months.


I note that Pure Planet also vary their DD's through summer and winter.

The DD hike is a bit annoying as I'm going from £47.91 to £83.84 which is a 75% increase - it says £35.93 'April to September' so I'm hoping it will only be 4 months at the higher DD rate. I've looked at Pure Planet but they charge membership on both fuels, but with slightly lower unit rates. I might try the tip of asking for a refund if I go into credit. It would be better if they give customers some choice in the DD amount like I did with my old scottish power account (before moving to OFTM in January)

Prentiz

On the 13th OutFox wrote to me about an increase in estimated annual bill to £765.98, from my current payment of £719.88 pa. Actually, the first email they sent me said they were increasing my bill _by_ £765.98, which was a bit alarming, although later corrected. Today they wrote to me to tell me my annual fee would be £893.98 pa, an increase of 24% on my current bill, with the winter direct debit thing forward-loading my cost to effectively double my direct debit, despite credit. Effectively the front-loading means I'm loaning them money, despite a huge increase in price. Need to find an alternative supplier I think...

ploddo

jono1975 wrote: »

Just out of curioisty, has anyone else's estimated annual usage gone up by exactly 25%, mine has. I've also just checked my parents values and theirs has also gone up by 25%

Coincidence? So it looks like they are expecting us all to be paying 25% more a year from December, I guess that formula was easy to come up with and apply to all their accounts en masse.

Trustpilot is looking intersting today for them!

Don't know about the annual usage but my direct debit is up 75%!!
(and i'm in credit):mad:

Maybe the extra 25% they are assuming you will use will also put you into a higher membership fee bracket!

teflontone

That's interesting, was wondering why my new estimate is so much more than the last bill estimate. So they expect prices to rise another 25% this year? Maybe I will look at those fixed deals.

They have been fine so far but have annoyed me last couple of days with the notice of a variable direct debit - much higher in winter, lower in summer. I want to pay the same amount each month, not pay more for 6 months. How is that spreading the load via direct debit?

Merlin139

I have just had my E-mail to say they will increase my Direct Debit. They have not increased my EAC.

I have sent an E-mail marked COMPLAINT

My complaint is based on the fact that the E-mail with the notification on it says in the first 2 lines:

As part of our obligations as an energy supplier and in accordance with Ofgem’s guidance, we are required to do all we can to limit the risk of customers accruing a debt on their account.

With the winter fast approaching and following a review of your Direct Debit, we have found that your current payment is not sufficient to cover your expected energy consumption.

According to the 9 statements I have had since I joined OFTM my EAC for Gas and Electricity will actually be 16% less over the year than what they are quoting in the increase E-mail.

OFTM has not carried out a review of my account because if they had they would actually be reducing my Direct Debit. It looks to me as if its a one size fits all approach.

Based on the reply I got back at 22:54

Joella Wormleighton, Complaints Resolution Manager is working late.

Helen24601

I only switched to Outfox The Market just 42 days ago, via the Cheap Energy Club. Funny that once they got me on board there were suddenly two price hikes announced in just one week. One price hike was almost 80%, from £45 - £80 per month. Their e-mails were shoddy too. One email had worrying figures of an increase of £800 to my bill, which was quickly followed by a correction email that was almost identical except for the subject heading "Please ignore last email". Website is basic and looks like a kids' comic book. It all appears like a dodgy company. So I'm out and have switched again to a fixed tariff elsewhere.

tori.k

Im another unhappy bunny we've not even started with them yet in the middle of the switch and had a email to say our DD wont be enough to cover the winter months so hiking another £58 a month yet its only dropping by £19 in the summer months, yet we've not even been able to submit our opening reading on their website.
We are giving up on the energy club recommendations it ends up nothing but hassle dealing with the start up energy companies naff hours on there helplines as wanting everything online but don't have the tech in place to do the simplest things, we don't save enough to make the hassle worth it.

techno12

I'll stick with them for now - been with them for 5 months on the variable Zapp tariff (spent the past 15 years with Npower. Thought I'd try a smaller supplier, as Npower for once had no half-decent deals whatsoever when my previous fix ended.)

Got the email about the DD today (in my Spam folder lol).

Seems ok - the EAC has gone up 25% but that's to be expected as I've had 2 price increases since I joined, plus the forthcoming one, each ~8% ish, and the DD never went up at all.

Mine's going up from the current £35.27 to £61.72 Winter, then down to £26.45 Summer.

I'm not too fussed as NPower doubled/halved my DD regularly, as they never seemed to realise that I use almost exactly the same amount of gas/elec each year, so every 'review' their computer algorithm would aggressively change the DD up/down.

geoffplus

I applied to switch to OUTFOX on 30 Oct. They had quoted a good deal and confirmed this by email on 31 Oct.

After the 14 days cooling off was over on 14 Nov they email to say in fact my annual payment will now be 25% higher than they quoted me. I contacted them (not possible by phone) to cancel on 15 Nov and they say the 14 days is up so I cannot cancel.

Surely if they quote one price and then, for no apparent reason, increase it by 25%, they have got me to switch by underhand means? I even tried their online quote on 15 Nov using the same usage figures I gave them before, and it was lower than they emailed me!

I have (perhaps rashly) cancelled the direct debits. The switch is supposed to happen on 19 Nov. Not sure what to do now

tori.k

geoffplus wrote: »

I applied to switch to OUTFOX on 30 Oct. They had quoted a good deal and confirmed this by email on 31 Oct.

After the 14 days cooling off was over on 14 Nov they email to say in fact my annual payment will now be 25% higher than they quoted me. I contacted them (not possible by phone) to cancel on 15 Nov and they say the 14 days is up so I cannot cancel.

Surely if they quote one price and then, for no apparent reason, increase it by 25%, they have got me to switch by underhand means? I even tried their online quote on 15 Nov using the same usage figures I gave them before, and it was lower than they emailed me!

I have (perhaps rashly) cancelled the direct debits. The switch is supposed to happen on 19 Nov. Not sure what to do now

We've done the same technically we started the switch on November 1st with DD due on the November 18th I've stopped the DD and email OFTM to cancel the switch (im unsure if the switch has actually fully happened yet) so will contact our current supplier to see if they can stop it,If they can't I will just switch to another company and decided they can send me a bill for any monies owed.