Octopus Tracker

Spoonie_Turtle

pfpf said:

Slinky said:

Don't know why OE have decided to issue is with an averaged gas bill for June when their app shows full data for the whole of the month. We were on holiday for 2 weeks when the prices went up so have lost out through the averaging. I'm also a little concerned that their app, and Octoprice, appeared to show some small amounts of usage when the boiler was off (no pilot light), and I'm wondering if we may have a small leak on the house side of the meter. Having an accurate bill with the daily readings may give us some insight.  I've asked them to sort and re-bill.

i remember i got the "averaged" bill several times when on tracker. as with you the app had no missing data, or so i thought.
if the missing data is in a slot where to you there was no usage therefore the app says zero usage OE still may not have that slots data.
there is a website where you can pull up actual data and i saw a missing 30 min slot where usage was zero to me but OE averaged the bill. someone may be able to provide that website link?

I don't know if it's the one you're thinking of but octopriceuk.app does this, under the Data Checker section

jazzy

My current Octopus tracker contract needs renewing 12 months up. Should I take out a new tracker contract or are there better Octopus contracts around. perhaps going for a fixed contract?

masonic

pfpf said:

Slinky said:

Don't know why OE have decided to issue is with an averaged gas bill for June when their app shows full data for the whole of the month. We were on holiday for 2 weeks when the prices went up so have lost out through the averaging. I'm also a little concerned that their app, and Octoprice, appeared to show some small amounts of usage when the boiler was off (no pilot light), and I'm wondering if we may have a small leak on the house side of the meter. Having an accurate bill with the daily readings may give us some insight.  I've asked them to sort and re-bill.

i remember i got the "averaged" bill several times when on tracker. as with you the app had no missing data, or so i thought.
if the missing data is in a slot where to you there was no usage therefore the app says zero usage OE still may not have that slots data.
there is a website where you can pull up actual data and i saw a missing 30 min slot where usage was zero to me but OE averaged the bill. someone may be able to provide that website link?

Telegraph_Sam said:

I can't remember off hand which web site is/was able to plug the data gaps but would be keen to be reminded.
With averaging is it not a swings & roundabouts (or a zero sum game?) situation where the peaks are balanced out by the troughs? OR if one is put onto Flexible for the periods of missed data then there is bound to be a loser? A special interpretation of "averaging" ?

It was Guy Lipman's site, but he took it down. There are a few alternatives, such as the octoprice one. These use the Octopus API to obtain the data, so you can see exactly what they have. But they will not generally provide the daily consumption readings that Tracker uses, only the half hour readings used by Agile, Go, Cosy et al.

JerryW said:

I'm on tracker and have never had an averaged bill. Each bill contains a list of all of the days in the month and a cost calculation for each day. That and the Kwh used are then totalled and the bill includes a statement of the average consumption and cost. But the bill is calculated from the daialy figures not the average. Wondering if some are misreading their bill? 

If your bill has the list by day, what you pay has not been averaged.

No, averaging is definitely a thing, and Octopus CS have confirmed it. The billed daily figures for the whole billing period do not match the actual daily figures, usually because of a missing daily consumption figure for just one or two days. Made very clear when you have a long weekend away and the empty home appears to be using lots of energy.

masonic

jazzy said:

My current Octopus tracker contract needs renewing 12 months up. Should I take out a new tracker contract or are there better Octopus contracts around. perhaps going for a fixed contract?

Depends on your usage, region, and which fuel(s).

Slinky

JerryW said:

I'm on tracker and have never had an averaged bill. Each bill contains a list of all of the days in the month and a cost calculation for each day. That and the Kwh used are then totalled and the bill includes a statement of the average consumption and cost. But the bill is calculated from the daialy figures not the average. Wondering if some are misreading their bill? 

If your bill has the list by day, what you pay has not been averaged.

I have the list by day, and what they've billed HAS been averaged. We were away for 18 days, Nest turned the hot water off after day 2, so we had 16 days of no use at all.  According to OE, we used 2.25 kw or thereabouts  a day for every day we were away.  There's no pilot light on the boiler, and the heating would not have kicked in.

I've checked the Octoprice UK app, and there's no missing data.

ETA, I'm thinking next time I go away, I think I'll submit meter readings before I go to trigger a bill, then again when I return. Let them try averaging that!!!

Telegraph_Sam

Thanks for the memory prompt. It was indeed Guy Lipman and he told me that he was no longer "doing" Tracker.
My situation when I left Tracker (currently trying to decide on re-joining) more or less mirrors JerryW's. We're getting into deep waters here. I'd have thought that if there was a clear case of Octopus charging  an averaged or any other rate at a time when there was demonstrably no (human) consumption, that Octopus would be on the defensive to justify their stance publically. A case probably for their legal people and their interpretation of T's & C's

Telegraph_Sam

@Slinky. Otherwise known as ghost consumption over the 18 day period

QrizB

JerryW said:

I'm on tracker and have never had an averaged bill. Each bill contains a list of all of the days in the month and a cost calculation for each day.

 ...

If your bill has the list by day, what you pay has not been averaged.

That's not strictly correct.

All Tracker bills contain daily calculations.

A "real" bill will show daily consumption (kWh) varying up and down, reflecting how real household energy use varies daily depending on demand.

On an averaged bill, the daily consumption will track steadily downwards (in the first half of the year) or upwards (in the second half) in response to a model of how typical household energy use will trend seasonally.

If you look at your bills, the difference is easily seen.

JerryW

QrizB said:

JerryW said:

I'm on tracker and have never had an averaged bill. Each bill contains a list of all of the days in the month and a cost calculation for each day.

 ...

If your bill has the list by day, what you pay has not been averaged.

<snip>

A "real" bill will show daily consumption (kWh) varying up and down, reflecting how real household energy use varies daily depending on demand.

<snip>

That exactly describes my bills.

I can only report my own experience .. perhaps my last sentence was a step too far, if others bills are different

jazzy

masonic said:

jazzy said:

My current Octopus tracker contract needs renewing 12 months up. Should I take out a new tracker contract or are there better Octopus contracts around. perhaps going for a fixed contract?

Depends on your usage, region, and which fuel(s).

3500 kwh Electric & 7000 kwh Gas for 12 months. South Wales area.