What Tariff Variable, Fix 1 yr or Fix >1yr

jonesox20

Following good practice I have been comparing tariffs for my gas & electricity, but i'm confused! I get different results depending on whether I opt for a Variable, Fixed for 1 year or Fixed for more than 1 year. My gut instinct is to fix for more than a year as prices only every go up. does anyone have any views or advice?

JJ_Egan

Variable is not fixed and can go up at any time .
Prices have crept up since this time last year.
Fixed would depend upon the difference in price for more than 1 year .
What is the difference 1 to 2 years ??

matelodave

Fixing allows you to know how much your energy will cost over the fixed period whereas a variable tariff might go up (seldom down ) in the same period.

The longer the fix, the more it will cost because the energy companies guess is probably about as good as yours regarding energy costs eighteen months or so in the future.

So it's a gamble on what you feel might happen - you can sit and do your own sums to decide whether a one year fix might work out cheaper than a two year one over the two years bearing in mind that the first year will probably cost you a lot more than a one year fix.

You should also bear in mind that now the "price cap" is in place you can almost guarantee a variable tariff increase in April and October when OFGEM revalue the "cap".

jmatt81

I have just switched to EDF. Their 1yr and 2yr fixes are basically the same for me each month and both have zero exit fees. I opted for the 1yr fix but may switch to the 2yr.

matelodave

It's not how much it cost you each month but how much the overall bill will be based on your consumption.
They will only cost the same if the tariff (cost per kwh and daily standing cahrge are identical)

I've just had a shufti at their costs and if you are determined to go with EDF then their 2 years fix is only a few quid more expensive (I am all electric and it would cost me an extra £11 over their 1 year fix which I reckon is pretty good)

However that said going with EDF would cost me over £400 a year more than I'm paying at the moment so I dont reckon that their tariffs are anywhere competitive. Even Octopus looks like a bargian in comparison

JJ_Egan

As above month DD or estimates are just that not a fixed sum not the total cost .
Daily standing charge x 365 .
Unit price x the amount you actually use .
That may be more or less over the year than an estimated DD or estimated yearly cost .

jmatt81

matelodave wrote: »

It's not how much it cost you each month but how much the overall bill will be based on your consumption.
They will only cost the same if the tariff (cost per kwh and daily standing cahrge are identical)

I've just had a shufti at their costs and if you are determined to go with EDF then their 2years fix is only a few quid more expensive (I am all electric and it would cost me an extra £11 which I reckon is pretty good)

However that said going with EDF would cost me over £400 a year more than I'm paying at the moment so I dont reckon that their tariffs are anywhere competitive. Even Octopus looks like a bargian in comparison

I use just under 5000kWh a year with about 2/3 at night time. EDF's one year fix costs me £650/yr but their 2 yr fix has a charge of £657. The cheapest overall for me is Utilita but this is a variable which is something I have never opted for.