Good/bad time to switch energy supplier?

[Deleted User]

I'm going through my utilities and my Octopus Tariff seems to be £240 a year more than I can get elsewhere (although Octopus have been great). Is now the right time to switch or is it worth waiting to see if energy tariffs fall further and as we are coming into better weather?

Talldave

Every month you don't switch you waste £20. What's the early exit fee on the tariff you're considering? That's all you would have to pay to move if prices drop again. Dither for two months and you're £40 down.....

That said, did you work out the savings yourself with calculator or spreadsheet? Or is that figure a comparison site's fictitious saving based on the assumption you might spend some months in the next year on your supplier's standard tariff?

Is that a dual fuel saving? If so, try quotes for separate suppliers - often a revelation of further savings.

JJ_Egan

As above  .

Similar questions over the years asked with answers as yes or no .

Gas prices had dropped but last two tariffs i looked at went up last week .

So many based upon estimates rather than actual prices .Or as said based upon reverting to standard price as opposed to a better deal .

[Deleted User]

Talldave said:

Every month you don't switch you waste £20. What's the early exit fee on the tariff you're considering? That's all you would have to pay to move if prices drop again. Dither for two months and you're £40 down.....

That said, did you work out the savings yourself with calculator or spreadsheet? Or is that figure a comparison site's fictitious saving based on the assumption you might spend some months in the next year on your supplier's standard tariff?

Is that a dual fuel saving? If so, try quotes for separate suppliers - often a revelation of further savings.

Thanks. It's Octopus with no exit fee. Possibly move to British Gas. I switch every year but the expiry is the end of March - so as usage drops for Spring/Summer off the difference isn't an even amount (compared to Oct-Feb). Aside from wondering about wholesale price falls, the question is whether the best fixed-tariff renewal deals take place in the Autumn (pre-Winter) rather than in Spring when energy usage falls.

UnclaimedEnergy

Most fixed deals should take into account a whole 12 months, therefore taking one up in Autumn or Spring wouldn't (or shouldn't) make a difference.

For most of the cheaper companies, they just set their prices based on everyone else to try and be the cheapest etc. - This is very highly driven by wholesale, therefore whether or not you should lock in a fixed deal all depends on if you can predict what the wholesale market will do.

MWT

neversay said:

Thanks. It's Octopus with no exit fee. Possibly move to British Gas. I switch every year but the expiry is the end of March - so as usage drops for Spring/Summer off the difference isn't an even amount (compared to Oct-Feb). Aside from wondering about wholesale price falls, the question is whether the best fixed-tariff renewal deals take place in the Autumn (pre-Winter) rather than in Spring when energy usage falls.

Check the maths carefully on that switch, the 'saving' will probably have been calculated against the most expensive 'out of contract' Octopus tariff, not the cheapest one they offer.

Check the current Octopus tariffs here:

https://octopus.energy/tariffs/

You can always ask Octopus to move you to a cheaper tariff at any time as they have no charges for switching or minimum periods.

[Deleted User]

Thanks @MWT and @UnclaimedEnergy. I have a spreadsheet to compare current gas/electric tariffs against the alternative tariffs to calculate the savings for different levels of usage. It also plots the relative cost lines to understand the impact of standing charges versus unit rates. I suspect (but can't prove) that the most competitive 'deals' occur in the Autumn.

MWT

neversay said:

... I suspect (but can't prove) that the most competitive 'deals' occur in the Autumn.

The handy thing with Octopus is that with no penalties to change, if they do release a cheaper tariff at any point you just ask to switch onto it.

No need to guess when the cheapest 'deals' are out, just move onto a cheaper tariff when/if it is made available.

As gas prices have fallen in recent months I've moved twice, each time onto a 12 month fixed tariff, so the risk of prices going up is covered and still with the freedom to move cheaper when possible...

Talldave

neversay said:

Thanks @MWT and @UnclaimedEnergy. I have a spreadsheet to compare current gas/electric tariffs against the alternative tariffs to calculate the savings for different levels of usage. It also plots the relative cost lines to understand the impact of standing charges versus unit rates. I suspect (but can't prove) that the most competitive 'deals' occur in the Autumn.

What do you classify as most competitive?  Like many others, I've switched gas supplier twice in 6 months as prices have fallen - both appeared competitive at the time (as the cheapest available), but falling prices altered that.  Prices have now risen slightly, so for me both Autumn and Spring offered competitive deals, but that was simply based on price variations on the wholesale market.

UnclaimedEnergy

neversay said:

I suspect (but can't prove) that the most competitive 'deals' occur in the Autumn.

One thing you will find in Autumn is that more suppliers have been (and are likely to be) on the brink of going under - therefore they're more likely to put out ridiculously cheap tariffs to try and get more customers in for the '1 month upfront' credit.

If you did want to do some analysis then it might be something to take into account.

I would just suggest to avoid tariffs with an exit fee on them and keep looking every so often to see if there's anything cheaper.

davidjazzlover

I would like to switch to EDF but they require smart meters to be installed within 3 months which I assume would need an engineer to enter my house while we are self isolating due to the coronavirus. What should I do?