IMPORTANT NEWS FOR THOSE ON ENERGY FIXES

pickapennyup

Spoonie_Turtle said:

pickapennyup said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

pickapennyup said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

K2rool said:

A question on behalf of a friend he currently on a fix with GEUK let say it only lowered to the cap she eligible for warm homes discount which GEUK only offers to core group which she isn't, anyone know any energy supplier still accepting new customer on svr

They have changed the Warm Home Discount in Englsnd and Wales so your friend should not bank on getting it this year - people have to claim a qualifying benefit but it also depends on the age/size/type of property where they live.

Still worth trying to change to a participating supplier though, in case he will qualify.  (I also recommend Octopus.)  He just needs to be aware it's possible he might not qualify.

i phoned Eon in August and they never asked me about my home/age size etc just that i was on ESA i got the payment a week later it was so quick and easy i was surprised

Are you in Scotland?  If not, what payment was it?  The scheme for this year hasn't opened for England and Wales, and you can't be in Core Group 1 because you can't claim ESA after pension age.  It may have been some sort of hardship payment rather than the WHD.

no im in the UK,i normally apply on line but was on the phone so mentioned about applying and they said i cuyld do it then and there
im 51yrs old
they never mentioneda hardship payment andit does say WHD 
the only thing i would query is i thought this year it was £149
the payment  is below and i had had last years in October 2021

12 JUL 2022 Warm home discount - Broader group

+£140.00

£632.94 In credit

Wow, it looks like you were incredibly fortunate to get the extreme tail end of last year's WHD scheme then, they must have had some money left over.  This year's will definitely be £150 and for England and Wales there are only Core Group 1 and Core Group 2, no broader group.
[I don't know how NI does it, actually, haven't seen any mention at all of NI when reading about the change.]

so it looks like i have been given double for 2021 and 2022
i thought it was odd but had only applied online before

Chrysalis

deano2099 said:

TheAble said:

LauraJayne_2 said:

Ballymoney said:

Not sure why Martin’s advice for those on a fix is to do nothing?! That means overpaying between now and Oct 1st. Bizarre advice.

Agreed, I think Martin needs to stop giving people such poor advice. It more sounds like those on fixes should be trying to shift to standard variable rates with immediate effect

Also your fix's contractual end date has value. May be nice to rely on in case the govt changes the goalposts.

Yup. People seem to be jumping to make the same mistake a second time: assuming the government won't change their mind. A fix reduced down to the SVT has the advantage of reverting to the fix price if the government support stops for any reason. Jumping back to the SVT means paying full price if the government support stops. 
If we get a cold winter and blackouts I can absolutely see the level of support being dropped in order to strong-arm people into reducing usage.
Your fix is contractually guaranteed. The government subsidised rate is not. 

Well they had the chance to do tiered usage on the subsidy which would encourage lower usage, no need to go from one extreme to another to encourage people.

For reference I would rather have some blackouts with cheaper energy vs no blackouts with expensive energy but of course I am just one person out of millions.

The government only entering a 3 month contract has made it more likely I will stick to my current tariffs, but I am fortunate my fix is only slightly more than the EPG on gas and actually overall lower on electric.

Chrysalis

pickapennyup said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

pickapennyup said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

pickapennyup said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

K2rool said:

A question on behalf of a friend he currently on a fix with GEUK let say it only lowered to the cap she eligible for warm homes discount which GEUK only offers to core group which she isn't, anyone know any energy supplier still accepting new customer on svr

They have changed the Warm Home Discount in Englsnd and Wales so your friend should not bank on getting it this year - people have to claim a qualifying benefit but it also depends on the age/size/type of property where they live.

Still worth trying to change to a participating supplier though, in case he will qualify.  (I also recommend Octopus.)  He just needs to be aware it's possible he might not qualify.

i phoned Eon in August and they never asked me about my home/age size etc just that i was on ESA i got the payment a week later it was so quick and easy i was surprised

Are you in Scotland?  If not, what payment was it?  The scheme for this year hasn't opened for England and Wales, and you can't be in Core Group 1 because you can't claim ESA after pension age.  It may have been some sort of hardship payment rather than the WHD.

no im in the UK,i normally apply on line but was on the phone so mentioned about applying and they said i cuyld do it then and there
im 51yrs old
they never mentioneda hardship payment andit does say WHD 
the only thing i would query is i thought this year it was £149
the payment  is below and i had had last years in October 2021

12 JUL 2022 Warm home discount - Broader group

+£140.00

£632.94 In credit

Wow, it looks like you were incredibly fortunate to get the extreme tail end of last year's WHD scheme then, they must have had some money left over.  This year's will definitely be £150 and for England and Wales there are only Core Group 1 and Core Group 2, no broader group.
[I don't know how NI does it, actually, haven't seen any mention at all of NI when reading about the change.]

so it looks like i have been given double for 2021 and 2022
i thought it was odd but had only applied online before

New WHD is no applying, everyone deemed to be eligible will automatically get it. 

Group 2 is a combination of low income and deemed high energy use.  Its under funded so they not supporting everyone on low income, around 1/3 of low income people will get WHD.  Group 1 is similar to the previous core group.

The credit you shown is for the old WHD, looks like a very late payment for 2021.

brewerdave

Chrysalis said:

deano2099 said:

TheAble said:

LauraJayne_2 said:

Ballymoney said:

Not sure why Martin’s advice for those on a fix is to do nothing?! That means overpaying between now and Oct 1st. Bizarre advice.

Agreed, I think Martin needs to stop giving people such poor advice. It more sounds like those on fixes should be trying to shift to standard variable rates with immediate effect

Also your fix's contractual end date has value. May be nice to rely on in case the govt changes the goalposts.

Yup. People seem to be jumping to make the same mistake a second time: assuming the government won't change their mind. A fix reduced down to the SVT has the advantage of reverting to the fix price if the government support stops for any reason. Jumping back to the SVT means paying full price if the government support stops. 
If we get a cold winter and blackouts I can absolutely see the level of support being dropped in order to strong-arm people into reducing usage.
Your fix is contractually guaranteed. The government subsidised rate is not. 

Well they had the chance to do tiered usage on the subsidy which would encourage lower usage, no need to go from one extreme to another to encourage people.

For reference I would rather have some blackouts with cheaper energy vs no blackouts with expensive energy but of course I am just one person out of millions.

The government only entering a 3 month contract has made it more likely I will stick to my current tariffs, but I am fortunate my fix is only slightly more than the EPG on gas and actually overall lower on electric.

Not sure that you will have a choice on the gas as the way ML explained it ,your supplier will automatically reduce your gas tariff to the EPG cap. The leccy should remain on the fix as it's cheaper than the EPG rate. Or at least that's the way I read it.   

Mike360

deano2099 said:

TheAble said:

LauraJayne_2 said:

Ballymoney said:

Not sure why Martin’s advice for those on a fix is to do nothing?! That means overpaying between now and Oct 1st. Bizarre advice.

Agreed, I think Martin needs to stop giving people such poor advice. It more sounds like those on fixes should be trying to shift to standard variable rates with immediate effect

Also your fix's contractual end date has value. May be nice to rely on in case the govt changes the goalposts.

Yup. People seem to be jumping to make the same mistake a second time: assuming the government won't change their mind. A fix reduced down to the SVT has the advantage of reverting to the fix price if the government support stops for any reason. Jumping back to the SVT means paying full price if the government support stops. 
If we get a cold winter and blackouts I can absolutely see the level of support being dropped in order to strong-arm people into reducing usage.
Your fix is contractually guaranteed. The government subsidised rate is not. 

Not sure I would agree that my fix is contractually guaranteed. The government have stepped in with an announcement of a price freeze and my fix will be altered as a result. They could do it again.

The_Green_Hornet

Mike360 said:

deano2099 said:

TheAble said:

LauraJayne_2 said:

Ballymoney said:

Not sure why Martin’s advice for those on a fix is to do nothing?! That means overpaying between now and Oct 1st. Bizarre advice.

Agreed, I think Martin needs to stop giving people such poor advice. It more sounds like those on fixes should be trying to shift to standard variable rates with immediate effect

Also your fix's contractual end date has value. May be nice to rely on in case the govt changes the goalposts.

Yup. People seem to be jumping to make the same mistake a second time: assuming the government won't change their mind. A fix reduced down to the SVT has the advantage of reverting to the fix price if the government support stops for any reason. Jumping back to the SVT means paying full price if the government support stops. 
If we get a cold winter and blackouts I can absolutely see the level of support being dropped in order to strong-arm people into reducing usage.
Your fix is contractually guaranteed. The government subsidised rate is not. 

Not sure I would agree that my fix is contractually guaranteed. The government have stepped in with an announcement of a price freeze and my fix will be altered as a result. They could do it again.

Do we know that fixes will be altered or whether the suppliers will simply apply a rebate at billing time to reflect the government subsidy?

michaels

Chrysalis said:

deano2099 said:

TheAble said:

LauraJayne_2 said:

Ballymoney said:

Not sure why Martin’s advice for those on a fix is to do nothing?! That means overpaying between now and Oct 1st. Bizarre advice.

Agreed, I think Martin needs to stop giving people such poor advice. It more sounds like those on fixes should be trying to shift to standard variable rates with immediate effect

Also your fix's contractual end date has value. May be nice to rely on in case the govt changes the goalposts.

Yup. People seem to be jumping to make the same mistake a second time: assuming the government won't change their mind. A fix reduced down to the SVT has the advantage of reverting to the fix price if the government support stops for any reason. Jumping back to the SVT means paying full price if the government support stops. 
If we get a cold winter and blackouts I can absolutely see the level of support being dropped in order to strong-arm people into reducing usage.
Your fix is contractually guaranteed. The government subsidised rate is not. 

Well they had the chance to do tiered usage on the subsidy which would encourage lower usage, no need to go from one extreme to another to encourage people.

For reference I would rather have some blackouts with cheaper energy vs no blackouts with expensive energy but of course I am just one person out of millions.

The government only entering a 3 month contract has made it more likely I will stick to my current tariffs, but I am fortunate my fix is only slightly more than the EPG on gas and actually overall lower on electric.

Is it confirmed that they will
1) look at the gas and electric separately when applying the floor.
2) Not adjust the floor for any difference in Standing Charge compared to the default
 
From what I can see on EDF my electric is already below the floor and the gas above and they are not reducing the gas down to the floor, presumably as the overall amount payable is at or below the floor

goldygash

Hi, I am so confused, so please could someone help Put my parents on a 1 year fix in June which is more expensive than the current SVT and Oct Cap. Email last week said they come out of fix penalty free. Tried to do online but the exit fee was still there, so thought it best to chat to BG so they could do.

this is now where I am confused …. They have advised me to keep them on the current fix, as there will be a probable price rise in April. I said that I thought the Oct cap was guaranteed for 2 years,  so she went off and spoke to supervisor and still came back advising to stay on fixed.

Any ideas? Should I just move them back to the SVT? 

QrizB

goldygash said:

Any ideas? Should I just move them back to the SVT? 

It's your parents' choice, but personally I wouldn't stick with a fix that's higher than the October Ofgem cap.

goldygash

QrizB said:

goldygash said:

Any ideas? Should I just move them back to the SVT? 

It's your parents' choice, but personally I wouldn't stick with a fix that's higher than the October Ofgem cap.

That’s my view too. It just caught me off guard with talk about prices going up in April. Thought I’d missed something.