Advice on fix

matt_drummer

GardenGirl77 said:

I am very tempted to grab it now in case it disappears, but would worry that it could turn out to be the wrong decision if better deals become available in the meantime. I suppose if things change and much better deals start to emerge it would be worth paying the £75 exit fee.

Just writing this is making me think that I should go for it so thank you.

Nothing is going to change much in a downward direction, the only risk is that prices could sky rocket, they are never going to plummet down to levels we had two or three years ago.

Any savings from potentially better deals in the coming months will be peanuts unless you are a massive user of energy.

I'm not sure that prices will ever fall that much from where they are now, the longer they stay at this level the more normal it will become.

[Deleted User]

My questions is, if I go for this fixed deal now, will it start in October when my old fix ends? Or will the new fix start now so I lose 1.5 months of my old cheap deal?

You will need to ask your supplier. In most cases, a change of tariff is deemed to be a mutual variation of contract under and it has to be actioned within 5 working days. (Standard Licence Condition 23A)

Swipe

Ok, you've convinced me, Matt as I use the vast majority of my overnight storage heater electric between Jan & March. I've just fixed. Worst case scenario, I guess I should at least make some back on the standing charge alone as it's predicted to go up in April. Plus, it's only £75 exit fee (no gas) if in the unlikely event it does drastically fall.

matt_drummer

Swipe said:

Ok, you've convinced me, Matt. I've just fixed. Worst case scenario, I guess I should at least make some back on the standing charge alone as it's predicted to go up in April.

I don't know your circumstances but I think you have made a wise decision.

At least you know that you'll be paying rates that you are `happy' with for the period of your fix, one less thing to worry about.

In any case, if by some miracle prices plummet back to levels of three or four years ago during the period of your fix, the most you could lose is the exit fees.

GardenGirl77

I have just gone for it too, and got confirmation in my account that the new prices won't come into force until 7th October (when the old tariff ends).

Thank you to everyone for contributing. Reading other people's opinions and writing my thoughts down helped me to realise that
1 - if prices go down more than expected I will be no more than £150 out of pocket (the exit fees)
2 - I now have peace of mind of knowing how much I am going to be paying for the next 12 months 
 
Thanks again 

ArbitraryRandom

Erm... this might be a silly thing to say (and a bit late) - but if you take the fix today (in case it's pulled after the announcement) then you can cancel at any point within 14 days without paying the exit fees. 

So you can fix now AND keep an eye on any other offers/predictions over the next couple of weeks.  

Clicker9180

I can just confirmed that the offered fix will start after the old contract ends (so in my case 7/10/23-7/10/24).

manic37

ArbitraryRandom said:

Erm... this might be a silly thing to say (and a bit late) - but if you take the fix today (in case it's pulled after the announcement) then you can cancel at any point within 14 days without paying the exit fees. 

So you can fix now AND keep an eye on any other offers/predictions over the next couple of weeks.  

Not according to EON Next.

QrizB

matt_drummer said:

They could remain the same as now or they could go up significantly should unforseen events occur.
What is virtually impossible to happen is that fixes will appear that are significantly lower than they are now. Prices may come down a little but it is practically certain it won't be by a lot.

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One might instead say that energy prices are currently double the long-term historical average and are extremely likely to fall in the medium term as market forces exert themselves.

Crdw

I'm in the same situation, I've plumped for the smooth renew fixed rate too, after deliberating all day.
For me, I can't see myself being significantly out of pocket over the course of the year, and it is giving me peace of mind, especially with Q1 2024 being a bit uncertain. 
I'm the sort of person who worries excessively, so I'm being kind to myself by drawing a line under it today.
It was a shock to see that the prices had all but doubled since I signed up for my 2 year fix in 2021, so I'm trying to feel grateful for my historic savings rather than being shocked about commiting to this price increase..