OVO energy billing

timstours372

i recently changed from SSE to ovo energy because it was a better deal ,the direct debit changed from the 1ST to the 15TH of the month,they want a meter reading every month ,sse was every 3 months ,ove ask for it towards the end of each month and as its been a very cold winter most of the time i am then i debt ,they then put up my direct debit ammount ,then suddendly on the 1ST i am back in credit  ,can i do anything about this ,i cant afford to keep putting up the direct debit amount ,i wish i had not switched and sse offered me £40 credit to stay with them ,what can i do please

timstours372

sorry i meant the direct debit changed FROM  the 15th to the 1st of each month

UnclaimedEnergy

As OVO fixed tariffs have an exit fee you'd be looking at paying £30 per fuel to switch away now.
When you signed up to OVO they would have had your estimated annual usage which they would split monthly based on seasonal usage. However it seems that you're just using more than their estimates.

The alternative to having a slightly higher DD now with actual readings would be having a lower DD, but having a shock bill once you do submit your readings which would be higher than their estimates.

Most suppliers bill a month in advance to put your account in credit and then charge your bill against that credit. As long as your unit rates are lower than you were with SSE then you will be saving money in the long run compared to SSE.

niktheguru

you can always just ask them to change the direct debit date.
Also if you are giving regular meter readings you will only be paying for what you use.

DiamondLil

I switched to Ovo 13 months ago and regretted it within a month. Despite me giving full details of our usage at time of switching, copied directly from the usage figures on previous supplier's bills, they immediately doubled my monthly direct debit and continued to send weekly emails telling me to increase my payments. At last I'm free of them.  Six weeks later I'm still waiting for them to return my credit balance.

MWT

Some of this is a matter of timing...

When you switch during winter, paying for 1/12th of your annual usage will not cover your monthly consumption and so your DD goes up as the supplier needs to cover their costs and not have you in debt.

When you switch in say May/June, 1/12th of your annual use more than covers your monthly consumption and you build up a buffer that will deplete during the winter but will overall cover your annual use so your DD does not go up.

It can be tempting when you get to the Autumn and see a large balance on your account, to switch and get the balance refunded to you, but in reality you need that balance to carry you through the winter months...

The alternative is to use a supplier that will offer a variable DD option.

The result is your winter payments will be a lot higher than your summer payments, but you will only pay for what you use each month.