Disappointed

joep15041986

I am the first to admit that I don't fully understand everything about utilities, bills and all that goes with it. So when somebody / a website advertises a switching service such as this and promotes stories of people having saved 00's of pounds in doing so, naturally I am attracted.

In reality though, what has happened since I started using this site is a progression of problems which has resulted in me just checking my bank account to find out I don't know about enough money to get me to work or to feed myself until I get paid again on 23rd November.

I first used this service about 18 months ago to switch providers and was delighted by the quotation I was given which meant I would be saving about £15 a month so I signed up straight away. I was told it would be fixed so there were going to be no surprises. Then about six months in to I got an email saying my direct debit was going to be being increased by 4 times what I had be paying. I went through the complaints procedure with the supplier, I explained to them that was simply not affordable and they reduced it down to less than double the originally quoted price.

Then I started getting the emails from this site saying my tariff was due to expire and I would need to switch in order to avoid the costs going up. Fearing further increases to my outgoings on an already very tight budget I had a look again on the site and found another fixed deal which I have signed up to.

Today I checked my bank account and I found out my old supplier has taken out over £200. Bearing in mind I live in a one bedroom flat by myself and work full time so I am out of the house most of the day Monday to Friday that to me is an extortionate amount of money. Also to put it in to context (but not to infer any further blame on MSE's part), I have been on a debt management plan with Stepchange for the last 18 months. The process involved in getting set up on a debt management plan is very thorough and all disposable income is allocated to reducing the debt so I really do not have the funds to cope with surprise £200 debits and 4x increases in my monthly payments.

I know MSE are not responsible for them costs, this is my property and I use the fuel but I do not understand how I can be quoted such a low figure at the beginning to lure me in. I cannot help but think that I am simply not suited to using this site because I am not an expert on utilities myself but then I cannot see the need for this service if I was that proficient at managing my utilities anyway and therefore I think a new customer could well do with being made aware of these risks at the outset rather than just seeing the marketing of how much it is possible to save by using the service.

Doubtless someone is going to respond and tell me I am wrong in every way but one thing is for sure I am very disappointed that this did not live up to expectation for me and I did not manufacture those expectations up all by myself.

System

Welcome to the forum. I can understand your frustration but in themselves monthly DD payments mean nothing. You pay for the energy that you actually use at the tariff rate that you agreed to with your supplier. Use more: pay more.

When you come to the end of a fixed term tariff, the default position is that the supplier will move you to its standard variable (expensive) tariffs. Suppliers and comparison sites try to give the impression that you can save by switching tariffs. In truth, this is half a lie: yes, what you will pay will be less than you would if you stayed on the expensive SVT; however, as gas and electricity prices have risen markedly over the past 12 months, your new tariff will undoubtedly be more expensive than the one that you were on.

As far as annual costs are concerned, these must be based on past usage in kWhs/year for both gas and electricity. Usually, generic estimates based on rooms etc is a recipe for error.

I appreciate that none of the above is any comfort to people struggling to pay their energy bills.

D_M_E

You say your old supplier took £200?

How long ago did the switch take place?

Who is the old supplier and who is now supplying your energy?

If the switch has definately completed, then you should get onto your bank and tell them you want the £200 back as the company were not authorised to take it as the DD should have been cancelled and tell the bank you want the old DD cancelled and tell them to make sure it stays cancelled - if possible do it all in branch if you can. Customer service on the phone don't always listen to what you want and act on your instructions, whereas in branch you can see them taking action.

chrisw99

I first used this service about 18 months ago to switch providers and was delighted by the quotation I was given which meant I would be saving about £15 a month so I signed up straight away. I was told it would be fixed so there were going to be no surprises. Then about six months in to I got an email saying my direct debit was going to be being increased by 4 times what I had be paying

The word fixed refers to the tariff - the amount it costs per unit for gas/elec. Not the direct debit.

If you use more energy than your current DDs are covering you would quickly get into debt, so they increase the monthly payments. Similarly if you end up paying too much, they give you a credit back (eventually).

None of that ever worked out for me, so I now just pay after the event for the amount I've used. But this does mean big monthly bills in the winter, and tiny ones in the summer.

OPMDaze

DD Does mean something. It means they have your bank details. Never in a million years would a utility company get my bank details because they simply can't be trusted.

System

B13blues wrote: »

DD Does mean something. It means they have your bank details. Never in a million years would a utility company get my bank details because they simply can't be trusted.

Can’t be trusted... why should I be worried? All companies are required to notify customers prior to changing a DD payment. Problems do occur from time to time but there is considerable customer protection built into the Scheme.

OPMDaze

Sorry I've had Npower remove readings, change readings, and fiddle readings to suit their ridiculous bills. Would you give a company like that your bank details?

welshmoneylover

joep15041986 wrote: »

I am the first to admit that I don't fully understand everything about utilities, bills and all that goes with it. So when somebody / a website advertises a switching service such as this and promotes stories of people having saved 00's of pounds in doing so, naturally I am attracted.

In reality though, what has happened since I started using this site is a progression of problems which has resulted in me just checking my bank account to find out I don't know about enough money to get me to work or to feed myself until I get paid again on 23rd November.

I first used this service about 18 months ago to switch providers and was delighted by the quotation I was given which meant I would be saving about £15 a month so I signed up straight away. I was told it would be fixed so there were going to be no surprises. Then about six months in to I got an email saying my direct debit was going to be being increased by 4 times what I had be paying. I went through the complaints procedure with the supplier, I explained to them that was simply not affordable and they reduced it down to less than double the originally quoted price.

Then I started getting the emails from this site saying my tariff was due to expire and I would need to switch in order to avoid the costs going up. Fearing further increases to my outgoings on an already very tight budget I had a look again on the site and found another fixed deal which I have signed up to.

Today I checked my bank account and I found out my old supplier has taken out over £200. Bearing in mind I live in a one bedroom flat by myself and work full time so I am out of the house most of the day Monday to Friday that to me is an extortionate amount of money. Also to put it in to context (but not to infer any further blame on MSE's part), I have been on a debt management plan with Stepchange for the last 18 months. The process involved in getting set up on a debt management plan is very thorough and all disposable income is allocated to reducing the debt so I really do not have the funds to cope with surprise £200 debits and 4x increases in my monthly payments.

I know MSE are not responsible for them costs, this is my property and I use the fuel but I do not understand how I can be quoted such a low figure at the beginning to lure me in. I cannot help but think that I am simply not suited to using this site because I am not an expert on utilities myself but then I cannot see the need for this service if I was that proficient at managing my utilities anyway and therefore I think a new customer could well do with being made aware of these risks at the outset rather than just seeing the marketing of how much it is possible to save by using the service.

Doubtless someone is going to respond and tell me I am wrong in every way but one thing is for sure I am very disappointed that this did not live up to expectation for me and I did not manufacture those expectations up all by myself.

A quote is just a quote.
If you use energy than the figure quoted, you pay more. In fairness the energy company alerted you to the fact you were underpaying but you seemed to have refused the request to pay more. Thereby you pushed yourself into debt.

jcontest

joep15041986 wrote: »

I know MSE are not responsible for them costs, this is my property and I use the fuel but I do not understand how I can be quoted such a low figure at the beginning to lure me in. I cannot help but think that I am simply not suited to using this site because I am not an expert on utilities myself but then I cannot see the need for this service if I was that proficient at managing my utilities anyway and therefore I think a new customer could well do with being made aware of these risks at the outset rather than just seeing the marketing of how much it is possible to save by using the service.

Doubtless someone is going to respond and tell me I am wrong in every way but one thing is for sure I am very disappointed that this did not live up to expectation for me and I did not manufacture those expectations up all by myself.

As others have said, take this as a learning experience.
Report your readings as regularly as you can, and when you get price quotes then you need to use real values and not just something you hope is the case.


Far too many people fall into the trap of not reporting their usage, then they have large bills to catch up on. Other users are at the other end of the scale, they never report their usage and have thousands saved up with their energy supplier.



On top of that, regular readings will help you see when something is wrong. If your gas or electricity usage spikes by 20 or 30% then you know to get it checked.


People like you are the reason we are getting smart meters. Collectively the UK public is now going to pay roughly £20 BILLION, BILLION, so they wont need to read their meter 4-12 times a year. Thanks.