Tomato Energy (Electric Only Supplier) - Too Good To Be True ?

Bendo

MWT said:

QrizB said:

masonic said:

bob2302 said:

bristolleedsfan said:

wrf12345 said:

I think someone said there was an allowance allowed between opening and closing reading, they don't have to be exactly the same - down to the "lovely" chaps at Ofgem.

"Allowance allowed" aka within tolerance level relates to when opening and closing readings are the same, customer not happy being charged different closing reading than he/she actually took due to opening/closing readings having been decided by data collector aka mysterious third party.

From what's been said, it sounds like TE only read 30 minute data. If that's the case, there's double billing on the same energy until you reach the index value from the third-party.

TE also base their own fictitious "meter readings" on this index value + 30 minute data, so all of your subsequent readings with TE will be higher than those recorded by the meter. I've no idea what happens when you leave and report a lower reading to your new supplier.

I've been wondering that, too. Has anyone successfully left Tomato who can share their experiences?

Or is it all a bit Hotel California?

Switching directly from one HH tariff to another HH tariff hasn't really been a common occurrence and it does raise other issues such as the losing providers access to the last parts of the HH data...

Partly because any sensible supplier would onboard to a standard tariff rather than direct to TOU before knowing if they can read your meter.

MWT

Ildhund said:

MWT said:

... it does raise other issues such as the losing providers access to the last parts of the HH data...

The Hh data are still there in the meter's data store. So are index readings, but access to them needs elevated permissions. Anyone can get Hh data with the customer's permission, so this should in fact be easier than it appears to be with readings. Perhaps the data validator's remit will be expanded to cover this as well, especially since we're all moving inexorably on to MHHS. It's in everybody's interest that every half-hour's usage is billed correctly both by the supplier to the customer and by the generator to the supplier, so data can't be allowed simply to fall into the cracks on a change of supplier. 

There is no danger of data loss for sure, but the issue is the lack of a proper industry process to handle the transition of the access authority between losing and gaining supplier with a suitable overlap to allow HH billing to be completed.  

JKS$(

masonic said:

wrf12345 said:

I think someone said there was an allowance allowed between opening and closing reading, they don't have to be exactly the same - down to the "lovely" chaps at Ofgem.

No, the opening and closing readings must be the same as each other. They are not required to be the same as the actual read taken on switch day.

Until they don't have to be the same.

I was in a particular circle of Hell where TE & Octopus insist their own MRs are correct & agree, except they're different MRs. (the opening TE MR isn't on myWatts but confirmed by email)

Octopus finally issued a goodwill payment to cover the energy that was double billed. Even that wasn't straightforward - the credit didn't go into the bank account that my d/d leaves, as promised. When I chased it up 14 days later, they couldn't tell me where it had gone. As CS was telling me how glad he was that I'd 'reached out' & assuring me we'd 'break this down together', & my eyes were rolling, I remembered I'd made a payment by credit card once last year - & there was the credit. 

I could go to the Energy Ombudsman, but life is too short. If they don't investigate, just look at the evidence I submit, what are they going to deduce? That my MRs are wrong? I think I've got that now.

Imagine if all that data was available from a reliable meter, & suppliers could use it to create accurate bills...

In the meantime, I'm asking maintenance to take fortnightly MR photos, adding them to myWatts, & seeing TE adjusted upwards the next day. At least I have an accurate record.

Still delighted with TE savings & the new bill design is much better too. I don't regret switching to them.

SJMALBA

After 2 months, during which time both TE and Octopus Energy said, on multiple occasions, that the switch did take place, TE have now said that it did not, and I am still with Octopus! 

knight123

After being told several times over the phone that my switch (originally due Feb 28) would happen on the second week of April, I've been told over the phone that they're 'hoping to get me switched this month'.

It's genuinely bizarre - surely they can manually switch me if they've been having trouble with the switching service?

TroubledTarts

knight123 said:

After being told several times over the phone that my switch (originally due Feb 28) would happen on the second week of April, I've been told over the phone that they're 'hoping to get me switched this month'.

It's genuinely bizarre - surely they can manually switch me if they've been having trouble with the switching service?

I think we all have to accept that with very cheap pricing comes erratic service. 

I mean their CEO and what he says is hilarious.

masonic

I'm not sure when it happened, but the graphs in MyWatts have been updated to show the local time rather than GMT throughout the year. Times before the 30th March have been left alone. It's nice not to have to mentally adjust the times at last. However, if you download data, you won't get the period between midnight and 1am for the first day.

Also, a gentle reminder that it's Easter next week... https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81212433/#Comment_81212433

HillStreetBlues

masonic said:

I'm not sure when it happened, but the graphs in MyWatts have been updated to show the local time rather than GMT throughout the year. Times before the 30th March have been left alone.

Also, a gentle reminder that it's Easter next week... https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81212433/#Comment_81212433

TBF didn't state which Easter

masonic

HillStreetBlues said:

masonic said:

I'm not sure when it happened, but the graphs in MyWatts have been updated to show the local time rather than GMT throughout the year. Times before the 30th March have been left alone.

Also, a gentle reminder that it's Easter next week... https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81212433/#Comment_81212433

TBF didn't state which Easter

Shame it wasn't posted in a Rebel Energy thread. Though there are still 5 working days for the prophesy to come to pass in 2025

GingerTim

masonic said:

I'm not sure when it happened, but the graphs in MyWatts have been updated to show the local time rather than GMT throughout the year. Times before the 30th March have been left alone. It's nice not to have to mentally adjust the times at last. However, if you download data, you won't get the period between midnight and 1am for the first day.

Also, a gentle reminder that it's Easter next week... https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81212433/#Comment_81212433

Can I interest you in some lottery numbers?

😉

(pleasantly surprised to be wrong!)