If I cancel my new electricity contract with 14 days, will it revert to the previous tariff? New ten

howkflakegirl

I think I may have done something a bit silly. Me and my partner are renting a new flat and got a letter through the post from Octopus (who I assume were the previous tenant's electric company) titled 'To the new occupier.' I clicked on the link and put in the code on the letter and it came up with a price of £268 per month as the cheapest price, on a fixed price contract. 

Thinking that was too much, I looked at OVO's prices and found one for £153 per month as a fixed price contract so signed up to that instead. However, the cost per unit of electricity is higher than the price cap, although the standing charge is the same. From my understanding, instead of signing up with the fixed price Octopus tariff, I should have just let them keep sending letters through the post, which would have been calculated at the price cap. The letter from Octopus wasn't very clear and made it seem like you had to sign up to a fixed price tariff but I likely should have researched it more.

We're still well within the 14 day cooling off period for OVO so I would like to cancel and revert back to the price cap with Octopus, but I'm not sure this is possible.

Can anyone advise please? If I cancel with OVO will it just go back to the Octopus price cap cost with them sending a bill each month, instead of signing up to the fixed price contract? I believe the switchover date is May 19th. Thanks in advance, I know I've been silly here. 

MWT

howkflakegirl said:

From my understanding, instead of signing up with the fixed price Octopus tariff, I should have just let them keep sending letters through the post, which would have been calculated at the price cap. The letter from Octopus wasn't very clear and made it seem like you had to sign up to a fixed price tariff but I likely should have researched it more.

What you should have done the day you moved in was to call Octopus, give them your meter readings and set up an account with them and then just declined any fixed tariffs they offered to you during the call...

You shouldn't have been waiting long enough for them to send you any letters in the first place.

So have you actually set up and account with Octopus at all, or were you just trying to switch to OVO without actually registering with Octopus first?

If you've only just requested the switch to OVO then yes, contact them and cancel the switch, but do phone Octopus and get your account straight there as well, it will have to be a phone call, not just online. 

QrizB

howkflakegirl said:

We're still well within the 14 day cooling off period for OVO so I would like to cancel and revert back to the price cap with Octopus, but I'm not sure this is possible.

Can anyone advise please? If I cancel with OVO will it just go back to the Octopus price cap cost with them sending a bill each month, instead of signing up to the fixed price contract? I believe the switchover date is May 19th. Thanks in advance, I know I've been silly here. 

Yes you can cancel your switch to OVO.

This will move your account back to Octopus.

Once you've cancelled your switch, contact Octopus by phone or email and let them know you'd like to remain on Flexible Octopus, their capped variable tariff. They will set up an account in your name and then you can manage it online rather than dealing with "to the occupier" letters.