Best switching strategy

MoneySavingTart

I'm coming to the end of a Scottish power fixed 12 month deal
Ends 31/1/19 with £60 exit fees
Next week is the earliest I can switch without penalty
So the gamble is switch as soon as I can but pay the extra prices hike for longer or wait until later in January 19 and risk prices even higher.
I'm tempted to look at a 2 year fix but with no exit penalties so that I can switch again whenever I want to should market prices fall in the 2 years period.
Typical quotes are showing £5 per month more for 2 year fix fee free compared to 1year fix with £60 exit fee - looks a bit of a no brainer to go 2yr fix just for the versatility - unless you lot think otherwise?

TIA

[Deleted User]

@Moneysavingtart
This is the sort of loaded question that nobody likes to offer advice for.
Why?
Because they are too many variables and we don't have a crystal ball unfortunately.

£5 per month more on what spend? If you would spend £95 per month then £5 extra isn't a lot in percentage terms. If you only spend £40 a month then £5 is a lot more.

I'm on a two year gas fix without exit fees and when taken out in April cost 5% more per month than the cheapest deals. Now it I had to replace the gas deal today, I would have to pay 10% more than this deal.
So it looks like I made a good decision and is working out nicely. (the other firms with cheaper prices in April are now out of business so I missed a bullet there too)
What made it for me at the time in April was the zero exit fees as I knew I could leave whenever without penalty.

MoneySavingTart

YEs I realise is is a no body knows type question as regards when to switch but maybe all the big boys have hiked their prices for a bit and things are more stable (?) for a few weeks

I'm currently paying £71 pcm and manipulating my DD so I'm never in credit as Scottishpower online DD tool will let you do it. (daft but true!)

Typical quotes mean I need to be paying low £90s for 1 year fix and about another fiver for 2 year exit penalty free.

I could really do with moving my switching date into the summer period as with PV and solar thermal hot water my energy consumption is low in the summer and meter readings then would help setting a lower DD before winter.

[Deleted User]

@moneysavingtart
With the number of firms going bust currently and the number of firms who haven't paid their green taxes yet, I doubt that there will be any stability in the next 4 months. (And then you have Brexit to worry about so it isn't looking pretty). Less competition, more price rises is a general rule.

I just hope my 2 suppliers stay in business for the foreseeable so I don't have to change supplier until July 2019 for electric and April 2020 for gas.

As I said before, I choose the longer term gas deal because it had a get out free clause and was only a small percentage more but so far there is no need to exercise it as it is much cheaper than anything now on offer. And the company Zog haven't caused me any issues.

JJ_Egan

Me two year fix Feb as i dont belive prices will drop over the two years .

matelodave

As enegy is paid for in dollars and there's a better than even chance that the £ will gently sink into the sunset unless our MPs can stop squabbling then I'm guessing that energy prices will rise evn higher in the new year.

However that said, you still have around eight week of the coldest months left on your existing deal so perhaps you should evaluate the consequence of going onto a higher tariff for the next couple of months vs hanging on and trying to swap later in January.

It's a gamble which only you can decide

For example my electricty consumption will increase from around 500kwh in November to 1200kwh in December and 1200kwh in January. Just 2p extra per kwh would increase my costs by near enough £50 - more if the winter is colder than average. I know what my enegery consumption profile looks like and I use almsot 70% of my energy between November and the end of March so that's when I need it to be as cheap as possible.