No Notification of Price Changes [Merged]

SRS007

Last year, 2022, people on  Fixed Tariffs were told it would be cheaper, when the prices were about to shoot up for standard tariff people.  So I signed up. 

A few days after the gov introduced the Gov Energy Guarentee Discount for the standard tariff & the fixed tariffs were also adjusted to account for this, so we paid the same as the standard rate. Otherwise our rates were going to be much higher than the standard rate.

Now the Gov discount has ceased as from 1st July 2023 & Fixed Tariff people have been reverted back to their original sign-up rates, which in my case is considerably higher than the standard rates now.  About £800 based upon last years useage.

Why have they been allowed to do this?  Fixed Rate tariffs were adjusted to accomodate the change when we all had the Gov Energy Guarentee Discount but for some reason we are the fall guys this time?  Fixed rate tariffs are no longer a cheaper option & we should be allowed to abandon them without penalty. 

I emailed & asked to do this 12 days after I signed up, I was within the 14 days cancellation period, but EDF ignored me.  Because the prices went down I was content to leave things as they were.

EDF has not informed me 30 days in advance of the increases to my gas/elec. I received an email 8 hrs before it took place at midnight on 30th June BUT I was not asked to submit a reading, I did so of my own volition, AND  when I looked at my account the prices had already been increased & I don’t have any answer from EDF for how long the prices went up BEFORE 1st July.   

It will cost me £300 to leave the fixed tariff & about £850 more next year based on last years useage.  I want to know if the supplier is in 'breach of contract' with me for not advising me & if i can then leave the fixed tariff without penalty? 

 They have said that they informed me when the prices went down last year that they would go back up at the end of the gov discount.  I have no recollection of that & surely i would have insisted they cancel the Fixed Tariff if i had know!

I have read on the ML website somewhere ''Tariffs remain Fixed unless there is a gov intervention''  We had a gov intervention last year & our prices were dropped, although they were called 'Fixed'… isnt this another gov intervention, shouldn’t our prices drop to the standrad rate because we no longer have a Fixed Tariff now that the Gov have intervened again?

CSI_Yorkshire

This isn't a government intervention.  It's a government "unintervention".

Prices are going back to exactly what you signed up for.  That doesn't make you a fall guy.

They have breached no contract.  They are actually working exactly to the terms of the already existing contract.

Your price didn't change before 1 July.  It didn't actually change on 1 July either, just the government stopped paying part of your bill.

You have no case.

If it's really £850 more expensive on your fix, then the £300 fee sounds worth paying.  

SRS007

Last year, 2022, people on  Fixed Tariffs were told it would be cheaper, when the prices were about to shoot up for standard tariff people.  So I signed up. 

A few days after the gov introduced the Gov Energy Guarentee Discount for the standard tariff & the fixed tariffs were also adjusted to account for this, so we paid the same as the standard rate. Otherwise our rates were going to be much higher than the standard rate.

Now the Gov discount has ceased as from 1st July 2023 & Fixed Tariff people have been reverted back to their original sign-up rates, which in my case is considerably higher than the standard rates now.  About £800 based upon last years useage.

Why have they been allowed to do this?  Fixed Rate tariffs were adjusted to accomodate the change when we all had the Gov Energy Guarentee Discount but for some reason we are the fall guys this time?  Fixed rate tariffs are no longer a cheaper option & we should be allowed to abandon them without penalty. 

I emailed & asked to do this 12 days after I signed up, I was within the 14 days cancellation period, but EDF ignored me.  Because the prices went down I was content to leave things as they were.

EDF has not informed me 30 days in advance of the increases to my gas/elec. I received an email 8 hrs before it took place at midnight on 30th June BUT I was not asked to submit a reading, I did so of my own volition, AND  when I looked at my account the prices had already been increased & I don’t have any answer from EDF for how long the prices went up BEFORE 1st July.   

It will cost me £300 to leave the fixed tariff & about £850 more next year based on last years useage.  I want to know if the supplier is in 'breach of contract' with me for not advising me & if i can then leave the fixed tariff without penalty? 

 They have said that they informed me when the prices went down last year that they would go back up at the end of the gov discount.  I have no recollection of that & surely i would have insisted they cancel the Fixed Tariff if i had know!

I have read on the ML website somewhere ''Tariffs remain Fixed unless there is a gov intervention''  We had a gov intervention last year & our prices were dropped, although they were called 'Fixed'… isnt this another gov intervention, shouldn’t our prices drop to the standrad rate because we no longer have a Fixed Tariff now that the Gov have intervened again?

matt_drummer

That's what a fix is, you win some, you lose some. 

The fix meant you knew what you would be paying, you had peace of mind knowing the maximum you would be paying for the duration of your fix. I suspect that is why you fixed?

Fixes are not there to guarantee cheaper prices, they are an insurance against higher prices.

If you have car insurance and/or home insurance they are protection against large expenses, not to guarantee that you get more back than you paid.

What you have is buyer's remorse.

Ayr_Rage

Your tariff has NEVER changed from the date you agreed it, just like myself.

The EPG has come and gone and the price cap adjusted.

They did however remind you that both of the above had changed and you would now be paying what you originally agreed.

We took a punt and lost out, just accept it and move on as I have done.

EDF have not breached any part of your contract.

Edit : EDF certainly did inform customers how the EPG worked, you must have missed it.

matt_drummer

That's what a fix is, you win some, you lose some. 

The fix meant you knew what you would be paying, you had peace of mind knowing the maximum you would be paying for the duration of your fix.

Fixes are not there to guarantee cheaper prices, they are an insurance against higher prices. I suspect that is why you fixed?

If you have car insurance and/or home insurance they are protection against large expenses, not to guarantee that you get more back than you paid.

What you have is buyer's remorse.

NorfolkCanary

SRS007 said:

Last year, 2022, people on Fixed Tariffs were told it would be cheaper, when the prices were about to shoot up for standard tariff people. So I signed up.

A few days after the gov introduced the Gov Energy Guarantee Discount for the standard tariff & the fixed tariffs were also adjusted to account for this, so we paid the same as the standard rate. Otherwise our rates were going to be much higher than the standard rate.

Now the Gov discount has ceased as from 1st July 2023 & Fixed Tariff people have been reverted back to their original sign-up rates, which in my case is considerably higher than the standard rates now.  About £800 based upon last years usage.

Why have they been allowed to do this?  Fixed Rate tariffs were adjusted to accommodate the change when we all had the Gov Energy Guarantee Discount but for some reason we are the fall guys this time?  Fixed rate tariffs are no longer a cheaper option & we should be allowed to abandon them without penalty.

But by fixing that is the risk you take by a fix, in that if SVR energy prices fall you'll end up paying more, but you've certainty if they rise.

I emailed & asked to do this 12 days after I signed up, I was within the 14 days cancellation period, but EDF ignored me.  Because the prices went down I was content to leave things as they were.

If you were on a fix the prices shouldn't change, unless you mean the govt. adjusted rates which went down are now going back to the contract agreed value? the support was only intended to be a temporary solution.

EDF has not informed me 30 days in advance of the increases to my gas/elec. I received an email 8 hrs before it took place at midnight on 30th June BUT I was not asked to submit a reading, I did so of my own volition, AND  when I looked at my account the prices had already been increased & I don’t have any answer from EDF for how long the prices went up BEFORE 1st July. 

There's some info here that may be of use : Government Energy Price Guarantee | Our Update | EDF (edfenergy.com)

  It will cost me £300 to leave the fixed tariff & about £850 more next year based on last years useage.  I want to know if the supplier is in 'breach of contract' with me for not advising me & if i can then leave the fixed tariff without penalty?

 They have said that they informed me when the prices went down last year that they would go back up at the end of the gov discount.  I have no recollection of that & surely i would have insisted they cancel the Fixed Tariff if i had know!

I have read on the ML website somewhere ''Tariffs remain Fixed unless there is a gov intervention''  We had a gov intervention last year & our prices were dropped, although they were called 'Fixed'… isnt this another gov intervention, shouldn’t our prices drop to the standard rate because we no longer have a Fixed Tariff now that the Gov have intervened again?

You've signed up to fixed rates though, there isn't another govt intervention, such as the EBSS, it's removal of additional support.

This thread may be of help: EDF - getting out a fixed contract without penalties — MoneySavingExpert Forum

[Deleted User]

EDF has not informed me 30 days in advance of the increases to my gas/elec

Where has this come from? Suppliers only have to notify consumers if a ‘change’ results in an increase in the cost to a consumer. In such cases, ‘reasonable’ notice has to be given. The term ‘reasonable’ is not defined. With faster switching, eight hours may well be reasonable notice. That said, in the OP’s case he is on a fixed tariff so no notification was actually required as the agreed tariff didn’t change,

Spoonie_Turtle

SRS007 said: 

I emailed & asked to do this 12 days after I signed up, I was within the 14 days cancellation period, but EDF ignored me.  Because the prices went down I was content to leave things as they were.

I received an email 8 hrs before it took place at midnight on 30th June BUT I was not asked to submit a reading, I did so of my own volition, AND  when I looked at my account the prices had already been increased & I don’t have any answer from EDF for how long the prices went up BEFORE 1st July.   

…

 They have said that they informed me when the prices went down last year that they would go back up at the end of the gov discount.  

For what it's worth, with all the uncertainty going on and people having to think about all sorts of things and not just energy costs, I think it unreasonable for suppliers to expect people to remember what was said 9 months ago - plus the fact nobody knew at that point when the EPG discount would no longer apply. 

There's their legal obligation to provide information (I don't know what exactly their obligation is btw other than providing the basic information), then there's dealing with their customers as real people.  An advance notification would not have been difficult to send to everyone on a fix saying the EPG discount was being removed and people would be charged at their original fixed rates, and would have prevented people being taken by surprise like this.

In your position though, the fact you asked to cancel your fix within the cooling off period, and you have proof of this in writing, might help.  I can only sympathise as I don't actually know what you can do, but yeah I'd be pretty narked too.

Edit: so the tariff price didn't change, but the price you pay did and that's why a heads-up a bit more recently than 9 months ago would have been helpful.

cannugec5

Spoonie_Turtle said:

SRS007 said: 

I emailed & asked to do this 12 days after I signed up, I was within the 14 days cancellation period, but EDF ignored me.  Because the prices went down I was content to leave things as they were.

I received an email 8 hrs before it took place at midnight on 30th June BUT I was not asked to submit a reading, I did so of my own volition, AND  when I looked at my account the prices had already been increased & I don’t have any answer from EDF for how long the prices went up BEFORE 1st July.   

…

 They have said that they informed me when the prices went down last year that they would go back up at the end of the gov discount.  

For what it's worth, with all the uncertainty going on and people having to think about all sorts of things and not just energy costs, I think it unreasonable for suppliers to expect people to remember what was said 9 months ago 

I’m amazed that people can sign up for a fixed tariff yet think it unreasonable that people need to remember what they have signed up for! 

CSI_Yorkshire

cannugec5 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

SRS007 said: 

I emailed & asked to do this 12 days after I signed up, I was within the 14 days cancellation period, but EDF ignored me.  Because the prices went down I was content to leave things as they were.

I received an email 8 hrs before it took place at midnight on 30th June BUT I was not asked to submit a reading, I did so of my own volition, AND  when I looked at my account the prices had already been increased & I don’t have any answer from EDF for how long the prices went up BEFORE 1st July.   

…

 They have said that they informed me when the prices went down last year that they would go back up at the end of the gov discount.  

For what it's worth, with all the uncertainty going on and people having to think about all sorts of things and not just energy costs, I think it unreasonable for suppliers to expect people to remember what was said 9 months ago 

I’m amazed that people can sign up for a fixed tariff yet think it unreasonable that people need to remember what they have signed up for! 

Be fair - people signed up for a fixed tariff, the price of which got completely obscured for nine months by government hand waving (which to many would seem like they were not actually on that fix any more, but some sort of government tariff) - suggesting that a note to say "from 1 July, that fix you signed up for last year (tariff prices attached) will apply" might be nice seems pretty reasonable to me.

I don't back any sort of "you broke my contract", "I'm being discriminated against" or that sort of nonsense - but Energy Supplier communications are generally pretty terrible.  Look at how many times we've had to explain the EdF £67 subtotal wangle.