Yorkshire energy DD increase

martyn0934

Just recently switched to Yorkshire energy and have been with them one month but now they have put up my direct debit even though I am in credit. I find this appalling and very sneaky since it's after the cooling off period and I would have to pay a large exit fee to switch. So now costing me more than my old supplier. Yorkshire energy are total rubbish and ripping people off, not happy.

[Deleted User]

Why is this sneaky and appalling? A higher DD doesn't mean you're paying more for your energy.

Robin9

Tell us what your actual annual consumption is please and what are the two DD's

Talldave

Had you just given them meter readings by any chance?

MWT

martyn0934 said:

So now costing me more than my old supplier. Yorkshire energy are total rubbish and ripping people off, not happy.

It isn't 'costing' you more, you are just paying more into the pot each month from which your real costs will be deducted.

The real question is what are your real costs?

If you  have not given them a real meter reading then do so as the increased payment may be the result of an estimated reading.

If you have given them a reading then the increase may be necessary if that shows you are using more power than expected.

martyn0934

I had just given them a meter reading and I was not using more energy than expected, ( I had already worked out my last years consumption: electricity=2319kwh  gas=5019kwh). It is sneaky because if I build up a credit then they are earning interest on my money. The direct debit was £42 and increase to £49.   

MWT

If you prefer to just pay the exact amount you use each month than ask them if you can go onto a variable direct debit.

The downside of that is your payments will vary each month and they will be higher in winter than in summer.

If you prefer to know in advance what the monthly payment will be and have it remain level throughout the year then you will end up building up a balance on the account during the summer that will get used up during the winter, and if your usage changes then the amount you pay each month may also change. You just have to make sure the balance you build up is enough to get you through the winter and doesn't get excessively high.

Neil_Jones

martyn0934 said:

Just recently switched to Yorkshire energy and have been with them one month but now they have put up my direct debit even though I am in credit. I find this appalling and very sneaky since it's after the cooling off period and I would have to pay a large exit fee to switch. So now costing me more than my old supplier. Yorkshire energy are total rubbish and ripping people off, not happy.

Your direct debit is not a bill.  It is not an "all you can eat" thing either.  It is a payment towards the next bill.

Please read up on how Energy Direct Debits work:

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/lower-energy-direct-debits/

Robin9

martyn0934 said:

I had just given them a meter reading and I was not using more energy than expected, ( I had already worked out my last years consumption: electricity=2319kwh  gas=5019kwh). It is sneaky because if I build up a credit then they are earning interest on my money. The direct debit was £42 and increase to £49.   

During the summertime you expect to be building up  a credit ready to take you into the expensive months.

matelodave

Did you tell them how much energy you used last year or did you let them guess. What is your tariff in p/kw and s/c for both gas and leccy. When you use all those figures in the calculations you should have a pretty good idea of how much your annual DD should be (dont forget to add VAT if neccessary). Divide that number by 12 and it should be roughly what you monthly DD will be. Which will have no bearing on your consumption at this time of the year.

I find that I use about 30% of my annual energy consumption between Apri and October (seven months) and the other 70% between November and March (only five months) so I expect to pay 7x DD during that period, even though I've only used 30% of my energy. Come winter I'll only pay 5xDD for 70% of my energy.

You can refine it down to a monthly level as I do - based on 10 years info, so I know month by month whether my consumption is following my profile and I'll know if I'm using more or less than I expect. Possibly YE have done that for you and your consumption may already be more than they expect for this time of the year

It's not hard to understand however it does rely on you making sure that your initial estimates were accurate and that the DD was set correctly. If you monitor it then you can challenge them. Give us the tariff info and someone will work it out for you.

pokora

Check in your email that your tariffs didn't changed. Last month there was a hike and suddenly became worst option to switch.