Energy: Find the cheapest supplier & earn cashback

joe134

NonGeographicalMan wrote: »

I had to complain to the Chief Executive of Scottish Power a few months back to stop them increasing my direct debit from £65 to £80 per month when I was already heavily in credit by £300. The call centre advisers wouldn't accept their computer could be wrong or let me change the direct debit to another value.

Now that I am leaving them for Eon I should get a refund of around £250.:j

There,s no consistency, they have just reduced mine from £87 to £78. No mention to me, just noticed it when I logged on to my A/c, maybe it,s because I mentioned leaving yestrerday, not that reducing DD makes any difference to the actual bill

tabath

Ive used the comparisons sites and they all give me edf online 5 or 5.1 as the cheapest tariff for me. I know you get £30 cashback from MSmarket and only £15 from energyhelpline if you use them to switch so I'm tending to go with MSmarket. However topcashback do £60 if you go through them. The extra £30 back would be nice however I am a novice when it comes to cashback sites. I have used quidco before and on a number of transactions the referal was not tracked. Is there somewhere I can read about how to use these cashback sites properly or do you just have to accept that some of the referals will not be tracked? If that is the case I may as well just go through MSmarket for the £30. Thanks for any advice.

NonGeographicalMan

tabath wrote: »

Ive used the comparisons sites and they all give me edf online 5 or 5.1 as the cheapest tariff for me. I know you get £30 cashback from MSmarket and only £15 from energyhelpline if you use them to switch so I'm tending to go with MSmarket. However topcashback do £60 if you go through them. The extra £30 back would be nice however I am a novice when it comes to cashback sites. I have used quidco before and on a number of transactions the referal was not tracked. Is there somewhere I can read about how to use these cashback sites properly or do you just have to accept that some of the referals will not be tracked? If that is the case I may as well just go through MSmarket for the £30. Thanks for any advice.

It helps a lot to clear your internet cache in your web browser, including all Cookies, and to then restart your computer before then proceeding directly to the cashback site and logging in and clicking through to the merchant you want to make a purchase with from the cashback site that you are logged in to for your account.

I have just moved my own gas and electricity supply from Scottish Power to Eon using https://www.topcashback.uk and the transaction has tracked and been confirmed for the full £62 payment without me doing anything. I have had problems lately on Quidco with first a flybmi flight booking and now and a Post Office Homephone switch not tracking but after lodging an earnings query for the missing BMI cashback it has now been tracked (after a wait of several weeks after submiiting the query) and confirmed as being due for payment by Quidco.

I also did an energy switch for my mother to EDF Energy via my https://www.topcashback.co.uk account and that has not yet tracked but I think the reason is that the account is in her name and at her address and not my name at my address. It is allowed to use your https://www.topcashback.co.uk to order goods for other people but I suspect a manual enquiry with my mother's new energy account number will be needed to get that one tracked.

The main tricky thing is that they only allow a certain window after the purchase to submit the earnings enquiry for purchases that do not track automatically and you often cannot submit an earnings enquiry until after 15 or 30 days and then must submit it before 60 days have passed. You therefore need to check your accounts periodically and or diarise cashback that has not yet been tracked for the submission of Earnings enquiries on the appropriate date(s).

blahblahdoh

Anyone else here having fun with Scottish Power? I'm switching after completing a year capped. They say
"If you decide to change supplier while on Capped Price Energy September 2010,
ScottishPower must receive the notification before 14th October 2009
for you to avoid any cancellation fee."

Well, how do I know when they'll be notified? In order to ensure I don't
pay cancellation fees, I now have to change tarriff, and yes supply meter readings
and all the usual rigmarole - just for the interim period before my new supplier kicks in.
The reason for this is that they 'automatically' transferred me to a new annual
capped price agreement after my yearly agreement completed, rather than a standard tarriff.

I believe this is a deliberate ploy to make switching more difficult.

blahblahdoh

tabath wrote: »

Ive used the comparisons sites and they all give me edf online 5 or 5.1 as the cheapest tariff for me. I know you get £30 cashback from MSmarket and only £15 from energyhelpline if you use them to switch so I'm tending to go with MSmarket. However topcashback do £60 if you go through them. The extra £30 back would be nice however I am a novice when it comes to cashback sites. I have used quidco before and on a number of transactions the referal was not tracked. Is there somewhere I can read about how to use these cashback sites properly or do you just have to accept that some of the referals will not be tracked? If that is the case I may as well just go through MSmarket for the £30. Thanks for any advice.

Hi Tabath, I did exactly this a couple of days ago and it tracked the next day. I don't think there is any secret to 'using' the cashback sites - just make sure you are signed on and click thru via their link. Never used Quidco, but always found TCB reliable. Obviously can't guarantee it will work for you, but no reason to think it won't. Hope that helps.

blahblahdoh

Update: a pompous complaint to Scottish Power produced results - they changed my package to "Online Energy - Standard" almost immediately, all done via e-mail.

Note - switching suppliers can take 5-8 weeks (why?), so if you're on Scottish Power capped you need to act soon to avoid potential exit charges or being locked into another years contract 'automatically'.

NonGeographicalMan

blahblahdoh wrote: »

Update: a pompous complaint to Scottish Power produced results - they changed my package to "Online Energy - Standard" almost immediately, all done via e-mail.

This is still an expensive tariff now though but no doubt not as bad as their most expensive tariff. My mother was on this tariff (I switched her to it four years ago when it was the cheapest for electricity only) and I have just switched her to EDF Energy Online v5 that is meant to cut her electricity only bill (her heating is by oil boiler) from £650 to £489 per annum. I'm still concerned though about EDF possibly dumping her off on to a full price tariff next July (which this V5 tariff is only guaranteed to last until) or them putting up their prices only on their website without telling her (which they have done before with other online tariffs and reserve the right to do in their terms and conditions)

Note - switching suppliers can take 5-8 weeks (why?)

Purely because probably the UK's most incompetent and ineffective so called regulator (OFGEM, although its close a tie between it and Ofcom as to which is the most useless in protecting consumers) has allowed the transfer times to remain this long, even though as customers frequently provide the exit meter reading themselves there seems no reason why the transfer cannot be done same day. Porting a mobile number (much more technically complex where something actually happens that affects your SIM card and service) only takes two working days but an instruction for the pooled meter reading companies to send your meter read to a different supplier (such reads only happen once a year or so in most cases) takes 6 to 8 weeks to carry out!

In reality the 6 to 8 week period seems to be used purely to con you in to not leaving by your current supplier. Scottish Power have now both sent me an email offering me a case of Virgin wine to stay with them, then rang up to try to put me on a capped tariff that had various lock ins for a year and then finally rang up to ask why I might have the outrageous cheak to leave them after they tried to dump me off to on a now more expensive legacy Online V4 tariff and expected me to sign a one year contract to get the only very modestly cheaper V6 tariff offered to all their new customers (which I only even found out existed by doing an energy switch site comparison).

I'm still worried Scottish Power will manage to con my mother in to staying with them during one of their emails or phone calls to her during the next 5 or 6 weeks.....

myheadsonfire

Hi guys,
Ive had it all up to the hilt with energy companies!! I finally found refuge with the Utility Warehouse, I was introduced by a friend and after 6 months I have not looked back. I have checked my readings with them and pleasantly surprised. Not to mention the free calls I get and £100 cashback for loyalty after 12 months of paying my bills. One simple rate , gas, electric, phone, broadband all on one clear bill! Customer service? 15secs for a human to answer the phone ! All this without being tied in !! Hands Down every time.
What made me try it was the fact I had never heard of them and that meant no bad press!! I was ready for a change and its probably the best move Ive ever made to save money accross all my utilities.

NonGeographicalMan

myheadsonfire wrote: »

What made me try it was the fact I had never heard of them and that meant no bad press!! I was ready for a change and its probably the best move Ive ever made to save money accross all my utilities.

Are you sure you don't work for Utility Warehouse?

kj999

dcispv wrote: »

Npower annoy me, I'm £280 in credit and they still want to put my DD up! insane! After 30 mins on phone they agreed to only put my DD up by £20! I told them i am moving provider!

i had exactly the same thing today!! must be standard practice. they are taking the p1ss!!
Im going to swith provider too. :mad: