Utility point is Just Up 20 Autumn Renewal v2

hubb

My Utility Point Just Up Renewal July 19 v2 ends on the 4th Nov and I am in a conundrum as there doesn't seem to be any decent fixed deals out there that are that competitive with a good rating. I have been happy with UP but this new Just Up 20 Autumn Renewal v2 is their cheapest offer, but still a little more expensive than the current tariff I am on. As it doesn't come up in the energy club searches I am wondering if I should hold out in case a good collective deal comes out on MSE or are there no really good deals to be had this winter ? It doesn't help that Energy Club doesn't include Utility Point in their searches but non of the top rates (not including the really poorly rated companies) can better the tariff I am on at the moment. I have to make a decision soon before my tariff ends so has anyone else gone for the quite ridiculously titled Just Up 20 Autumn Renewal v2 ?

Talldave

It feels as if the best deals were around during the summer. For future reference it's a mistake to think that you must see your fixed deal out. It's worth running a check every month or two to see what alternatives are available.  If there are large savings, the exit penalties are worth paying. I paid a £30 penalty to switch gas suppliers earlier in the year - as a high user, potential savings mount up quickly once there's a bit of movement on the unit price.

Don't forget that separate suppliers seems to be the cheaper approach at the moment. I think Energy Club deals are mostly dual fuel, so a waste of time, as is the Energy Club itself - it doesn't include all suppliers, doesn't know any of my tariffs and even in the past when it did it sent "tariff ending" emails at the wrong time.

hubb

Well Uswitch is bringing up the same results, and choosing separate suppliers for gas and electric seem more expensive. I may just bite the bullet and go with Just Up 20 Autumn Renewal v2 for now and switch if any amazingly cheaper deals materialise (that outweigh the exit fees) but like yourself, I find the Energy Club not that useful really. Even more complicated are in some instances the standing charges and more expensive, but the KW rate is lower.

Talldave

Did you select the "show me companies that we don't give backhanders to" option?  Without that you will miss the cheapest suppliers who tend to be the cheapest because they don't give backhanders to comparison sites.

hubb

Talldave said:

Did you select the "show me companies that we don't give backhanders to" option?  

Are you referring to cashback ? If not, I can't see that option in the Energy Club.

Gerry1

hubb said:

Talldave said:

Did you select the "show me companies that we don't give backhanders to" option?  

Are you referring to cashback ? If not, I can't see that option in the Energy Club.

Forget the CEC, it doesn't show all suppliers.  Start with Citizens Advice and 'Switch with Which?'.

Talldave

hubb said:

Talldave said:

Did you select the "show me companies that we don't give backhanders to" option?  

Are you referring to cashback ? If not, I can't see that option in the Energy Club.

No.  You were talking about uSwitch who by default only show you results for suppliers that they can do the switching for (and as part of that get their own cashback (=backhander)).  You need to go to "Filter" on the results page and select "Include plans that require switching directly through the supplier".

Forget cashback, it's something else the supplier has to cover in their costs.  The cheapest suppliers don't do cashback, just as they don't do backhanders to comparison sites.  They just do good wholesome energy at low prices - and it's the same energy that you'd get from a cashback paying, backhander paying, uncompetitive dual fuel supplier!

hubb

So I go the the Which comparison site and get a duel fuel quote of £61 a month from Avro's Simple and SuperConnect tariff (review only), and yet I go to Avro's site direct with the exact same details and their quote is £63 a month. Also, the KW and standing charge rates are slightly different making it more confusing. Avro's site direct does not give you the option to select named tariffs. They just give the one quote.

Gerry1

Yes, I get a higher price from Avro than from Which?

It's quite common for energy companies to offer some tariffs only via third party websites.  The classic example is British Gas Evolve (formerly British Gas X).  The main BG site only shows very expensive tariffs because they don't want to alert existing customers to cheaper alternatives.  It's the same as insurance companies offering new customers much cheaper quotations than the renewal prices given to loyal customer.  That why I always say "Start with Citizens Advice and 'Switch with Which?'".

British Gas X was so unpublicised that even the BG call centre staff were telling people it was a scam !

bubieyehyeh

Has anyone previously asked MSE Energy Club, why they don't list all suppliers? If so, what was the answer?

Gerry1

The CEC said that Neon Reef haven't supplied them with their tariff info.

If so then the CEC should claim that 'We compare all tariffs that the energy companies tell us about'.

Neon Reef provide the info to Citizens Advice and Energylinx/Which, so it seems odd that they wouldn't do the same for the CEC.