MSE News: Most households STILL stuck on 'poor-value' standard energy tariffs 20 December 2017 at 6:33PM edited 21 December 2017 at 6:13PM in Energy 12 replies 2.1K views

Former_MSE_Callum

Over half of households are still on pricey standard variable energy tariffs, including as many as 71% of SSE customers and an increasing proportion of those with some firms outside the big six...

Read the full story:
'Most households STILL stuck on 'poor-value' standard energy tariffs'

Click reply below to discuss. If you haven’t already, join the forum to reply.

matelodave

So what - this is not news.

They could swap suppliers if they wanted to, they just dont bother so why keep banging on about it

bonus2010

Suppose this could be looked at in two ways, we could be thanking those wealthy people who don’t mind paying higher SVTs who no doubt help the profits of energy suppliers enabling them to offer cheaper fixed tariffs to those of us who prefer sourcing the best value. The other way is to consider those elderly and vulnerable people who are not computer literate and able to find cheaper deals. I should also add that I’ve just left Scottish Power where I found there was only a difference of £50 between their SVT and cheapest fixed deal relevant to my consumption. There is apart of me that would welcome complete regulation of the energy market that required the cheapest price to be offered to all domestic consumers without this need to constantly check the market.

House_Martin

Its not at all just the elderly or non computer literate who are mostly on standard prices its a spread throughout.
Eg three people who I have got onto the cheapest tariffs are, A senior mental health nurse, A University of Sheffield employee who works on the teaching staff and a fellow meter reader.All were on the SV tariff for years.
They used to do the same with home insurance and car insurance as well in accepting the renewals at face value..
Its an advert for MSE really. That is one website everyone should be watching carefully not F/book

KTF

matelodave wrote: »

So what - this is not news.

They could swap suppliers if they wanted to, they just dont bother so why keep banging on about it

Because then they wouldn't be able to push traffic to their comparison site

Michaelw

Those on prepayment tarriffs are the worst affected by prices with little difference overall to choices when it comes to switching.The Fuel Poverty message now means nothing with hardly any difference over a major supplier.

Blackbeard_of_Perranporth

Thanks to all that do not fix and wait for their bills, I am paying less. Now that I have just had my house insulated for free, I am paying even less on my 2018 December two year fixed deal I got in October 16!

Cardew

If you read on MSE the many horror stories resulting from switching, even from those who understand the various tariffs, it is little wonder that many people choose to stay with 'the devil they know'.

To get any value out of a comparison website you need to know your annual consumption in kWh. Many would not know a kWh if they saw one in the street, let alone how many they use in a year.

If asked how much they pay, many will only know the latest monthly direct debit, which is no indication of annual spend.

Smodlet

Cardew wrote: »

If you read on MSE the many horror stories resulting from switching, even from those who understand the various tariffs, it is little wonder that many people choose to stay with 'the devil they know'.

To get any value out of a comparison website you need to know your annual consumption in kWh. Many would not know a kWh if they saw one in the street, let alone how many they use in a year.

If asked how much they pay, many will only know the latest monthly direct debit, which is no indication of annual spend.

True, and most (probably not the most vulnerable, for whom I have every sympathy) can learn what a kwh is, how to read their meter(s), how to work out the cost of their usage, etc. just like the rest of us. For those who struggle, there is plenty of help out there. The National Numeracy Whatever-they-are is already posting on this board, for instance.

Richie-from-the-Boro

Those 71% of SSE customers amongst others considerably reduce [subsidise] my tariff.

The 2017 year has seen a hitherto unheard of 30% increase [from a long held very low base] in 'stickies' actually switching which is very good for those individuals. Theresa May's pre-electioneering promise to "address the “injustice” of families collectively paying £1.4bn over the odds" never materialised, and surprise surprise expecting the energy regulator to “do [its] job and stand up for consumers” by curbing prices never happened again and so it goes on and on and on, year after relentless year.

Even I've come unstuck this year after 7 years on three different excellent tariffs. My pointy stick in SP's all electric tariff system has fallen out this year and I'm gonna have a 'hecky-thump' of a price hike disadvantage to pay and nowhere obvious to run to.

Cardew is right if people do not have the basic annual kWh consumption right they have no chance. I often paste my own very personal full tariff details in threads on this forum for those to read and decide 'yes I can do that too, its not that complicated, if he can I can'. Best of luck.

Richie-from-the-Boro

I have just 4 weeks to go, per my above post I will again post my all electric NSCH details they're not difficult for anyone here to do. Let me start by saying if I stay with SP I'll be + £304.80pa next year compared to the fixed 2017 year. The best I can do with SP is :

.1.
Fixed price for 2 years
Price security until 31st January 2020
No exit fees
£83.47 /month
£1,001.64 /year[1]

.2.
Fixed price for 1 year
Price Security until 31st January 2019
£30 exit fees should you wish to change supplier
£81.47 /month
£977.64 /year[1]

- my old 2015-2018 fixed tariff was Help Beat Cancer Fixed Price Energy [Ends 31st Jan 2018] January 2018

- my current payment per month is : £50.00 [they ask only £37 / I pay £50]

- my Personal Projection Electricity Only for the next 12 months [current tariff] is :£696.84pa

Your actual usage in the last whole 12 months was :

- Day 2,455 kWh = 41.87% Day
- Night 5,864 kWh = 58.13% Night
- Total-pa 8,319 kWh

Now I like a shorts wearing winter average of 21°C in the winter period and use one big 3.4kW and one middle sized 2.5kW NSH thats a total of 23.8 + 17.8kWh or 41.6kWh of stored heat. That 41.6kWh of stored radiated heat is available for release over the next 17 day hours or the equivalent of a 2.44kW fire at full output for those 17 hours with the damper closed. Of course the reality of a 'thought through' NSCH system is its available for 24 hours not just 17 @ a 2.44kW of output all winter and includes a bubbling [ly] hot 2 baths full of water per day all year round.

Of course there are days when you need complimentary extra heat immediately, and days when your store of heat is never fully depleted, but its not wasted but remains in the can as existing paid for 'banked' heat that does not need to be replaced the next night.

I ignore their accounting BOT and calculate my own Calculated Annual Consumption as CAC ÷ 12 = my monthly direct debit. I will not allow their accounting BOT to increase or decrease my DD. I diligently put my own readings into their website every 6 weeks.

This 60% night 40% day setup earns me a 30%+ discount on the cost of electrical energy and a very comfortable 21°C winter environment. I'm not smug but snug, if I can do it you can, go for it. Now I'd better hit the comparison sites and find a better alternative to SP tariff. Best of luck.