deemed contract - switching - paying old supplier

jameslester78

old supplier is writing to me and tell me to sign up to a DD. I want to make a single payment once the switch has completed without setting up a DD. Is this a valid approach? Old supplier is bulb if it matters - i have not yet made contact with them and was not planning to until switch is complete.

[Deleted User]

You have to make contact with them; provide them with your contact details and a meter reading and then you are free to switch. By not contacting them, you are running the risk of the switch being blocked.

Reed_Richards

You have run the risk that the previous occupant of your dwelling lied about the meter reading and/or the date of the contract exchange.  Since you have not given your incumbent supplier any other information to go on you run the risk of finding yourself over-charged.  

niktheguru

Oh dear. You need to contact bulb, open an account and pay for what you owe between moving in and the switch date. Whether you pay by direct debit or in one transaction is irrelevant but you can probably insist on pay on receipt but they may charge you a fee for the privilege.

viva1

jameslester78 said:

Old supplier is bulb if it matters - i have not yet made contact with them and was not planning to until switch is complete.

Perhaps the OP is happy to pay for the previous occupants energy since their previous bill - in that case let them do so!

maisie_cat

When we moved our deemed supply was with bulb, we contacted them, transferred quickly and they were our supplier for around 6-8 weeks. There were no problems apart from their high tariff, but the sooner you sign up with them the sooner you can move.

Brie

maisie_cat said:

When we moved our deemed supply was with bulb, we contacted them, transferred quickly and they were our supplier for around 6-8 weeks. There were no problems apart from their high tariff, but the sooner you sign up with them the sooner you can move.

sorry - but a bit of a hijack....are bulb's tariff's particularly high?  they were the recommended cheaper one when I switch ours but I must admit due to having an ancient person in residence our monthly bills are very high.  I assumed it was due to her insisting on having the heat on up to 11 even this weekend.

Robin9

@jameslester78 I'm reading this a different way to the other replies..   I think you are saying that you were a customer of Bulb, all signed up and meter reads given   but there isn't a DD set up for Bulb to give you the credit built up.  Was there once and you cancelled it ?   If so can't you simply reinstate it  - or are you wanting Bulb to send you an invoice ?

jameslester78

Robin9 said:

@jameslester78 I'm reading this a different way to the other replies..   I think you are saying that you were a customer of Bulb, all signed up and meter reads given   but there isn't a DD set up for Bulb to give you the credit built up.  Was there once and you cancelled it ?   If so can't you simply reinstate it  - or are you wanting Bulb to send you an invoice ?

No, the other replies were correct. I am the new occupier, the previous occupiers were with bulb, i have switched to ovo, im waiting for the switch to complete before i contact bulb and pay for amount owed. The main reason I havent contacted them yet is I did not have a read as I have not been to the property and wont until mid August, it will remain empty until then. The amount owed will be < £5. I actually got my first read yesterday thanks to a neighbour.

My main reason for posting here was to assess the practicality of paying off the balance once the switch has completed via a non DD method.

niktheguru

Brie said:

maisie_cat said:

When we moved our deemed supply was with bulb, we contacted them, transferred quickly and they were our supplier for around 6-8 weeks. There were no problems apart from their high tariff, but the sooner you sign up with them the sooner you can move.

sorry - but a bit of a hijack....are bulb's tariff's particularly high?  they were the recommended cheaper one when I switch ours but I must admit due to having an ancient person in residence our monthly bills are very high.  I assumed it was due to her insisting on having the heat on up to 11 even this weekend.

bulb used to be very competitive, but now they are no where near the cheapest suppliers, and their customer service isn’t as good as it once was. I don’t really see any benefit of being with bulb these days….a non competitive variable tariff. Use the comparison sites with you annual usage and see where you can save.

t0rt0ise

You need to contact Bulb to open an account and give them a start reading otherwise they will make one up and overcharge you. You also need to choose a tariff, you won't want them putting you on a plan that lasts a year so you need to tell them that. You won't need to set up a DD.