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

Scot_39

After 30 failures - Ofgems history on ability to detect risk of failure doesn't exactly inspire confidence.  I still think the bar is set too low for a critical sector - one with very tight margins at cap rates - and having been being buried in debt and arrears - in part due to Ofgems own actions.

It may well be they are overcompensating and TE might well survive.

But on flip side some of the issues raised above re shifting money around whilst not paying others -  makes me worry about the same and other perhaps legal but not without consequences practices used at other utilities on a much larger scale.  And the ultimate final trajectory of their debts.

I dont envy Ofgem at times - caught between customers demanding ever cheaper deals, suppliers, govt green demands and other imposed policy costs  and political media / liberal pressures and a very - even relative to past events - unstable energy market (but not exactly the first time in many of our lifetimes that major market instability has occurred. )

Scot_39

Newbie_John said:

So OFGEM hasn't stopped them, TE CEO says they're improving.

But this topic is yet again people who predicted them going bust by end of 2024, February, Easter (and failed).. predicting again them going bust. 

Most not even customers.. are the only ones who keep failing here.

To quote the famous Mandy RD statement re thr CEO postings 

"Well he would, wouldn't he"

I remember the boss one of the Icelandic banks to collapse saying such positive things to media and reported in press.

LESS than 24 hours later  - before market opening hours on Monday morning - they had been shut down by regulator.

Doc_N

Scot_39 said:

Newbie_John said:

So OFGEM hasn't stopped them, TE CEO says they're improving.

But this topic is yet again people who predicted them going bust by end of 2024, February, Easter (and failed).. predicting again them going bust. 

Most not even customers.. are the only ones who keep failing here.

To quote the famous Mandy RD statement re thr CEO postings 

"Well he would, wouldn't he"

I remember the boss one of the Icelandic banks to collapse saying such positive things to media and reported in press.

LESS than 24 hours later  - before market opening hours on Monday morning - they had been shut down by regulator.

And the fatal words from a Prime Minister:

”I have every confidence in my Chancellor”.

MWT

Doc_N said:

Scot_39 said:

Newbie_John said:

So OFGEM hasn't stopped them, TE CEO says they're improving.

But this topic is yet again people who predicted them going bust by end of 2024, February, Easter (and failed).. predicting again them going bust. 

Most not even customers.. are the only ones who keep failing here.

To quote the famous Mandy RD statement re thr CEO postings 

"Well he would, wouldn't he"

I remember the boss one of the Icelandic banks to collapse saying such positive things to media and reported in press.

LESS than 24 hours later  - before market opening hours on Monday morning - they had been shut down by regulator.

And the fatal words from a Prime Minister:

”I have every confidence in my Chancellor”.

... or 'they have my full support...' usually followed closely by a resignation

I don't think anyone has been predicting specific dates of a failure for Tomato, merely highlighting behaviours and patterns of significant concern, and for once Ofgem actually acted more swiftly to limit the damage first and then consider what, if anything more is needed. 

If they had done the same when previous suppliers were doing crazy things like trying to fix short-term cash-flow problems by encouraging customers to make 4-figure advance payments in exchange for unfeasible discounts, then we might have avoided some of the more extreme mutualised costs from the failures.

Right now Tomato are dealing with problems on multiple fronts, DNO, Ofgem, Elexon and now HMRC...

Seems like they could cope with satisfying one or two of them, but keeping everyone happy without adding someone new to the list is quite a tall order.

I'd be perfectly happy for them to succeed, I'd rather that than have them fail and add more cost to everyone's bills, but somehow we need to be able to avoid the rapid expansion of new suppliers beyond their ability to cope even faster than Ofgem moved on this occasion.   

Telegraph_Sam

In fairness to Tomato, no one seems to have given them credit for providing the meat for what must be the liveliest blog in the MSE Energy database. By some margin.

coupleuk

I started this "blog" 9 months ago with the simple question "too good to be true?"

I moved 2 meters to them to find out.

They messed up the addresses and put both meters under 1 and nothing for the other.

MyWatts worked for 6 weeks and then nothing since.

I've never had a bill or made a payment.

Today,  my first meter went live with Fuse.

Despite having a SMETS1 meter I already have half hourly readings showing.

TE agreed to write off £2,000 of usage with them because they couldn't read my meters.

Well, they could for 6 weeks to October 16th 2024 before they flicked a switch and lost it all. Fuse obviously have that switch set because their software is on the ball day 1.

My 2nd meter transfer away from TE is on Wednesday.

I was full of hope for TE back in mid 2024 but I can't see how they can survive when their software is clearly set up wrongly.

colin79666

I’m back to not getting bills. Had a flurry last month of January, February and April within a few days of each other then nothing. Not sure what happened to March!

Octopus won’t close off my account because they haven’t agreed a closing reading with Tomato. I’ve sent them both photos of the meter reading on switchover day. Think I may have to get the ombudsman involved. 

MWT

colin79666 said:

Octopus won’t close off my account because they haven’t agreed a closing reading with Tomato. I’ve sent them both photos of the meter reading on switchover day. Think I may have to get the ombudsman involved. 

Unfortunately they cannot use the actual meter readings, they need the industry flow from Tomato, and it doesn't seem they have been great at doing that. 

Taking it to the Ombudsman may be necessary, but this is not likely to be a fault with Octopus, have you raised this as a complaint with Tomato?

Newbie_John

tlcgrantham said:

   From my point of view as a happy customer Tomato are the best energy supplier I’ve ever been with.  

Price, Tariff options, Customer Sevice, MYWatts APP and Billing are all superior to anything I’ve experienced before. 

                 I’m more than happy to remain with them whether they survive or not.

Same here, those who are happy tend to stay quiet, the remaining few % goes crazy on internet.

Examples most popular hotel booking websites reviews:
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.airbnb.com
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.expedia.com

tlcgrantham

@ Newbie John Did you change your Tariff to default Lifestyle? If so is it any cheaper or better for you? 

      Switching to the EV version has made little cost difference for me but the switch went through quickly and without a hitch. Plus I have my prices fixed till next May and I can switch back if I don’t like it later.