Decision Dilemma - Symbio, Pure Planet, or....?

SaraD

Thanks to all the helpful responses about my NSH yesterday, here I am with another question!

I need to decide today on where to switch from current supplier EDF.  My MAIN priority is cost, but of course, I don't want to risk major issues such as unreliable supply/cheaper or smaller companies going bust/even worse customer service than EDF.

So....currently, Symbio is the best from a financial standpoint. But I worry about the old adage 'if it seems too good to be true, it probably is'. The 'best' overall supplier, based on reputation/green credentials is Pure Planet. They are cheaper than EDF but about £100/yr more than Symbio.
Any thoughts or feedback on these options? I don't see Octopus featured here - apologies but I haven't double-checked if they are excluded for any reason. I'm not too worried about the minor details such as exit fees or cashback at this stage.

Would be grateful for some shared experiences or knowledge - thanks! :-)

Neil_Jones

"quality of supply" (whatever that's supposed to mean) is handled by your local DND - distribution network operators  - they run the local gas pipes and cables that serve your home.  You don't pay directly for it through your bills but they deal with new connections and moving things around.  Everything is quality controlled outside of the supplier of choice, so its the same gas/electricity you'd get regardless of who you're with.

If the company goes bust Ofgem's Supplier of Last Resort (SOLR) takes place.  You basically get shifted to somebody else.

Customer service - well that varies.  If all goes smoothly you may never need them.

rp1974

Based only on cost if Symbio is cheapest then that's where I'd be going,however only do so on the explicit understanding that customer service isn't a strongpoint,or much of a priority with them,and also any issue no matter how simple can and usually will be made unnecessarily difficult to resolve.

If your prepared to be on top of anything problematic quickly and before signing up take a good look in the Symbio thread,just be aware that nobody,including myself is a Symbio customer for any reason other than cost.

Hasbeen

As above with Symbio as they are cheap!

Customer service nil but so what. If they go bust like all my previous suppliers. I just move on.  

JJ_Egan

OP are you sure you are right about best price .

How are you measuring Symbio versus next nearest ??Estimated direct debits ??

Octopus is on CEC and other comparison sites .

Had at least 15 switches even pre MSE , never a problem across many supplier . One went to the wall but again no problem .

Customer Service never ever needed , helped by giving monthly meter readings ,

SPOWER

If you like agg, or want agg go with Symbio.  Neon Reef are the next cheapest and they are much better in every way.  

bristolleedsfan

JJ_Egan said:

Octopus is on CEC and other comparison sites .

Octopus have just launched more expensive Tariffs via Comparison Sites thus will be further down results table, possible CEC results might still show cheaper Octopus Exclusive 12M Fixed February 2021 v2 as it still shows as current within Octopus list of Tariffs even though more expensive Octopus Exclusive 12M Fixed March 2021 v1  has been launched.

Hasbeen

SPOWER said:

If you like agg, or want agg go with Symbio.  Neon Reef are the next cheapest and they are much better in every way.  

Never had any major "agg" with Symbio. If I went now for neon reef an extra £50 per year.

But each to their own on a Money Saving site. 

SaraD

bristolleedsfan said:

JJ_Egan said:

Octopus is on CEC and other comparison sites .

Octopus have just launched more expensive Tariffs via Comparison Sites thus will be further down results table, possible CEC results might still show cheaper Octopus Exclusive 12M Fixed February 2021 v2 as it still shows as current within Octopus list of Tariffs even though more expensive Octopus Exclusive 12M Fixed March 2021 v1  has been launched.

Thanks (and for your message) - this is the challenge i.e. you make a decision or try an assessment...only for things to have changed by the time you apply! 

Hasbeen said:

SPOWER said:

If you like agg, or want agg go with Symbio.  Neon Reef are the next cheapest and they are much better in every way.  

Never had any major "agg" with Symbio. If I went now for neon reef an extra £50 per year.

But each to their own on a Money Saving site. 

Again, it's hard to keep up with all the variables! Although I AM focussed on cost, in truth I'd hate to have to spend even more of my time resolving any problems, as I've had to do with EDF over 2 years. 

I've narrowed it down to two options - Pure Planet and Neon Reef. If I'm still undecided after an hour I may just toss a coin!! Thanks for all the feedback, everyone :-)

Tallerdave

Symbio - utterly incompetent, convoluted billing, massively over-estimate to gain interest free loan from customers, not a whiff of smart meters, but cheap (my current supplier).
Pure Planet - excellent, great user forum, run by people with brains, but no direct customer service to call, all done via app/online, been rolling out smart meters (my previous supplier).

SaraD

By the way, with regards to both Pure Planet and Neon Reef:
1. Can anyone explain the lack of E7 rate? Is it simply that their daily rate is so low that it compensates for lack of E7? I'm always being told that E7 is the only way for me to be economical, since I have a NSH - but the calculations I have done based on my usage show both these options as cheaper.
2. I've recently had a smart meter installed by EDF - it's a Chameleon 3 type and I'm guessing that's a type 1? Does anyone know whether Pure Planet/Neon Reef can use this or if I'll have to provide meter readings?