Merits of switching

Flying_Lizards

Big fan of MSE, I've switched energy suppliers broadly annually since competition became available back in the day. Similarly swapping my parents and in-laws etc . Sadly somewhat scarred now and no longer convinced it's worth it. Remember the great Npower IT transition / long term billing debacle - caught up in that big time . I've been fighting Together energy since forever after a leaky Gas meter swap out caused billing errors . Toto went bust on me ! The Energy Ombudsman takes ages and ages to do anything , their findings ignored nor implemented -they have no teeth. The smaller companies do not offer Smart meter roll-out nor read 1st gen units. You will not get the warm home discount. Forgive the cynicism, against a backdrop of rising raw power costs - I'm not sure it's worth the time and stress any more . Thoughts welcome

mac.d

Don't just chase the cheapest available deal and do a little research before switching?

Be wary of using the new, small suppliers who have little feedback, and check if the warm home discount is available before choosing what supplier to switch to. No suppliers, big or small, can currently get remote readings from SMETS1 smart meters, this has been a known issue for a long time and like the rest of the smart meter roll-out, you can take with a pinch of salt the assertion that issue will be an easy fix.

If you don't want to switch all the time, find a supplier that you like, and just make sure you keep an eye on their prices and change tariffs with the same supplier to make sure you are on their cheapest available tariff.

brewerdave

Generally not worth using the likes of USwitch or MSE Energy club any more as all the cheap deals are outside of comp. sites.
If you are time poor ,have to agree that its becoming too much hassle HOWEVER, IF (like me as an OAP) you have time to spare ,then still worth going thru the rigmarole. Switched end of Sept and predicted savings versus previous suppliers was over £120 pa.
Even living thru 3 supplier failures (and Together Energy who I'm still trying to sort out after 9 months!) switching is still a goer for me:T

UnclaimedEnergy

brewerdave wrote: »

Generally not worth using the likes of USwitch or MSE Energy club any more as all the cheap deals are outside of comp.

Anything backing up the cheapest energy deals being outside comparison websites?

Normally the cheapest tariffs you can't switch direct, but they're still on there if the company updates them regularly.

For some companies, especially Big 6 and Octopus Energy they're cheapest tariffs are only available on comparison websites such as Uswitch (However may not necessarily be the cheapest).

btr30

I used to be an advocate for big 6 fixed term deals, but my last three suppliers have been variable price small scale providers and I have been happy with the suppliers used and the switching process.
Even persuaded my dinosaur dad to switch from his EDF blue price promise, to Orbit Energy and he is delighted to be saving £400 per year on the best EDF could offer him.
Never been in a position when a supplier has died on me, but it wouldn't put me off.

Biscuit_Tin

Flying_Lizards wrote: »

Big fan of MSE, I've switched energy suppliers broadly annually since competition became available back in the day. Similarly swapping my parents and in-laws etc . Sadly somewhat scarred now and no longer convinced it's worth it. Remember the great Npower IT transition / long term billing debacle - caught up in that big time . I've been fighting Together energy since forever after a leaky Gas meter swap out caused billing errors . Toto went bust on me ! The Energy Ombudsman takes ages and ages to do anything , their findings ignored nor implemented -they have no teeth. The smaller companies do not offer Smart meter roll-out nor read 1st gen units. You will not get the warm home discount. Forgive the cynicism, against a backdrop of rising raw power costs - I'm not sure it's worth the time and stress any more . Thoughts welcome

You need to start by consulting a comparison site to find the best deal for you.

But you need to understand what is important for you. The comparison site only compares the annual cost of the amount you plan top use, in your supply reagion, with the cost of that tariff as it stands on that day.

Yes there are other matters you may wish to consider.

e.g.
1. a variable tariff might go up tomorrow! (although, to be fair, comparison sites usually are aware of such price increases at least a month in advance and update accordingly)
2. WHD - this is not included as not everyone gets it. But if you do, you need to take that into consideration when choosing the best deal for you.
Remember, it may be better to take a tariff that is £200 cheaper than a competitor, even if it doesn't offer WHD when the competitor does!
Those who don't switcvh, and so eventually end up on a supplier's expensive default tariff, often are paying over £300 per year more than they need to be (before WHD is taken into consideration)
3. Is customer support more important to you than price? Many comparison sites have a CS indication to assist you is choosing if that is important. Also there is a feedbak thread for almost every supplier here on MSE.
4. Smart meters. A contentious subject. Some people want them; some don't. Some suppliers currently offer them; some don't. If you already have a smart meter, will it continue to operate in smart mode when you switch?
Again, not something that comparison sites consider, but if it is important to you, take that into consideration when choosing your best deal for you.
etc
etc

AndyPK

for an easier life.


1) Go with one of the big 6 companies
2) when you switch and fix yearly, try and stay with the same company if they are offereing a good deal.
Only move to another big 6 if you consider the savings and benefits worth it.

Biscuit_Tin

AndyPK wrote: »

for an [STRIKE]easier[/STRIKE] expensive life.


1) Go with one of the big 6 companies
2) when you switch and fix yearly, try and stay with the same company if they are offereing a good deal.
Only move to another big 6 if you consider the savings and benefits worth it.

I corrected your post for you :cool:

... although, to be fair, I heard our guru live on ITV last night suggesting the Big 6 may be the cheapest at present, but those deals are not available direct from the supplier; you need to go to a comparison site anyway.

I've not checked the validity of the claim, but anyone will when they consult a comparison site for themselves.

JJ_Egan

Merit of switching is to save money .
That saving may be very little if you are already on a good deal or pre price increase deal .

ThemeOne

In the massive drive to get more people switching, which I'm sure was well intentioned, I think the only message that really got through was you could save money by doing so.

So a lot of people ended up switching to new suppliers, only to find they were too small to process the transfer efficiently, and/or provide much in the way of customer service.

AndyPK

Mr Tin.

I tried switching to one of the smaller elec companies about 2 years ago. maybe more. There were problems. (not their fault) however when I tried to contact them I found you had to wait 1 hour is a que, and then got cut off at 6pm when they went home!

I decided an extra £35 a year was worth paying to go with one of the big 6 that I could get hold of to sort an issue out!