Bulb to Avro

fifthofwhisky

I’m on Bulb’s VariFair dual fuel tariff and a notification from Energy Club advised that I can save around £159/pa (Quidco £114/pa) by switching to Avro. Has anyone made this switch? I’ve adjusted my monthly debit with Bulb a couple of times without any problems. Is that possible with Avro? Also, is there any requirement to take a smart meter (not wanted)? I’m thinking I might as well take the Avro cashback deal to save £159 as it fits in with my higher electricity use. Next best options were Green Network Energy and Shell Energy - both with higher monthly payments and exit fees.  

Tariffs are below. Quite a difference in standing charges between Bulb’s Vari-Fair and Avro’s Simple and mPower12M compared to Avro’s Simple and Super Fixed.

Bulb:

Elec

Standing charge=18.09p/day (£66.02/pa)

Unit=13.32p/kWh

Gas

Standing charge=19.47p/day (£71.07/pa)

Unit=2.61/kWh

Paying £84/m for both (annual projection £1173)

Early exit fee=£0

Avro Fixed Tariff (Simple and mPower12M)

Gas

Standing charge=21.00p/day

Unit=2.168/kWh

Elec

Standing charge=21.00p/day

Unit=12.390/kWh

£85/m (£1023/pa)

Cashback=£25

Early exit fee=0

Avro Simple and Super Fixed Tariff

Gas

Standing charge=14.175p/day

Unit=2.315/kWh

Elec

Standing charge=14.175p/day

Unit=12.60/kWh

£83/m (£1000/pa)

Cashback=£0

Early exit fee=0

Approx. annual gas and electric usage is 11,000kWh and 5500kWh respectively. Annual gas use will decrease slightly due to increased insulation and interior partitioning. Electric use is slightly up due to people being at home and I expect that to continue. Also, electric use will possibly increase slightly since I expect to be at home more and using power tools and light machinery in a workshop. If the latter continues, I’m thinking to add a small solar array to the workshop. By the way I noticed that export tariffs are 5.38//kWh for Bulb and Avro is 3.00p/kWh (this can be discounted in costing for the 12 months ahead). I did a recalculation on the Avro tariffs at increased consumption levels for both fuels and there’s not much between them. As per current usage the Avro cashback deal has a slightly higher monthly cost and slightly higher annual savings.  

 

Gerry1

I switched from Bulb to Avro (possibly with someone else in between) and had no problems, Avro were great and didn't even mention smart meters.  It was also possible to switch immediately and without penalty to cheaper Avro tariffs when they were introduced.  Just check the Ts & Cs in case anything has changed.

Bulb are a pain because they now refuse to bill at single rate if you have an E7 meter.

Talldave

Your figures don't add up, using your consumption figures the costs of both Avro tariffs are £50 more and Bulb £17 more?

fifthofwhisky

Talldave said:

Your figures don't add up, using your consumption figures the costs of both Avro tariffs are £50 more and Bulb £17 more?

I rounded up the figures from the ones used for the Cheap Energy Club Alert, which may explain a discrepancy. However, putting in higher figures seemed to indicate savings with Avro vs Bulb. I guess I need to decide on the expected usage for the next 12 months and then calculate those manually using the relevant tariffs.

onlyfoolsandparking

I switched from Bulb to Avro back in February, no complaints, switch went well Bulb refund was quick and meter reading to Avro straightforward up to now. You seem to be 'on top' with being able to work out tariffs and although @Talldave is telling you your figures don't add up (no reason to dispute that) I believe the there is a definite saving to be made between Bulb and Avro. Of course there are cheaper tariffs around but a I said Avro have been a good switch for me so go for it if you want.  

matelodave

Do your sums very carefully regarding solar. Even though you'll save a bit on your leccy costs and even get some export payments make sure that the capital outlay for the panels will pay back over reasonable period of time.

fifthofwhisky

onlyfoolsandparking said:

I switched from Bulb to Avro back in February, no complaints, switch went well Bulb refund was quick and meter reading to Avro straightforward up to now. You seem to be 'on top' with being able to work out tariffs and although @Talldave is telling you your figures don't add up (no reason to dispute that) I believe the there is a definite saving to be made between Bulb and Avro. Of course there are cheaper tariffs around but a I said Avro have been a good switch for me so go for it if you want.  

Thanks. The savings might not be as high as Cheap Energy Club suggested. However, an annual saving of even £50+ adds up over the years. The only way forward is to keep switching.

fifthofwhisky

matelodave said:

Do your sums very carefully regarding solar. Even though you'll save a bit on your leccy costs and even get some export payments make sure that the capital outlay for the panels will pay back over reasonable period of time.

Thanks. Very good point. I would not be paying installation costs, only for certification so that should help.