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

MeteredOut

Now can the thread title be edited to remove the question mark?

EssexHebridean

QrizB said:

GingerTim said:

(Paraphrasing) It's over.

I look forward to seeing the CEO's social media posts on the subject. They've been a spot of light relief.

A fiver says he’ll still try and brazen it out for a bit longer.

MWT

EssexHebridean said:

QrizB said:

GingerTim said:

(Paraphrasing) It's over.

I look forward to seeing the CEO's social media posts on the subject. They've been a spot of light relief.

A fiver says he’ll still try and brazen it out for a bit longer.

I imagine the other directors will act to bring this to a close even if he does not, as none of them will want to let 'wrongful trading' drag them into personal liability ...

bagand96

MeteredOut said:

Now can the thread title be edited to remove the question mark?

It wasn't Too Good To Be True for the 11 months I was with them.  I got the cheap electricity at the advertised rates.

Of course not all customers enjoyed a hassle free experience.  And a few on these forums take a more detailed interest and dare I say will indulge in a little schadenfreude when the inevitable happens.  But plenty did just take the cheap rates and save cash.

lohr500

bagand96 said:

MeteredOut said:

Now can the thread title be edited to remove the question mark?

It wasn't Too Good To Be True for the 11 months I was with them.  I got the cheap electricity at the advertised rates.

Of course not all customers enjoyed a hassle free experience.  And a few on these forums take a more detailed interest and dare I say will indulge in a little schadenfreude when the inevitable happens.  But plenty did just take the cheap rates and save cash.

Did you think the pricing was sustainable long term? Or just a loss leader to grow a customer base to test the MyWatts platform as a mainstream challenger for the Octopus Kraken IT platform?

I have to say there is nothing wrong with that strategy so long as the funding and competence are there to drive the strategy. 

bagand96

lohr500 said:

bagand96 said:

MeteredOut said:

Now can the thread title be edited to remove the question mark?

It wasn't Too Good To Be True for the 11 months I was with them.  I got the cheap electricity at the advertised rates.

Of course not all customers enjoyed a hassle free experience.  And a few on these forums take a more detailed interest and dare I say will indulge in a little schadenfreude when the inevitable happens.  But plenty did just take the cheap rates and save cash.

Did you think the pricing was sustainable long term? Or just a loss leader to grow a customer base to test the MyWatts platform as a mainstream challenger for the Octopus Kraken IT platform?

I have to say there is nothing wrong with that strategy so long as the funding and competence are there to drive the strategy. 

I did not analyse the pricing strategy of the business any more than I do when buying a £30 flight across Europe or a pint of milk in the supermarket.  You pay your money you take your choice.

I found out about Tomato from this very thread. So thanks to the OP for bringing the cheap rates to my attention. I kept an eye on the thread due to early reports of billing issues (GMST/BST and SMETS1 etc) and later the regulatory hurdles up to the state of play today.

Last week I decided to switch as I didn't fancy being a ToU SoLR guinea pig, but I was eyes wide open the whole time (and saving money!)

EssexHebridean

You wouldn’t have been a “TOU SOLR Guinea Pig” l suspect - those being SOLR’d from Tomato will go straight to an SVR tariff I would imagine - I could be wrong on that but it’s relatively unusual for anything else to happen under the SOLR regime 

masonic

EssexHebridean said:

You wouldn’t have been a “TOU SOLR Guinea Pig” l suspect - those being SOLR’d from Tomato will go straight to an SVR tariff I would imagine - I could be wrong on that but it’s relatively unusual for anything else to happen under the SOLR regime 

I think it was the coming from TOU to SOLR that would make one a guinea pig. Complicated even more by the lack of comprehension of the role of meter readings by the failing supplier.

Usual process is to take a meter reading as close to the appointment date as possible. But then what if the final bill relies on HH data? And what if the deemed TE start read plus consumption data ends up being way off the reading you want to use to open the SOLR account?

In my case, TE had my opening meter reading down as 11779, ignoring the actual read I gave them and using an estimate. Try as I might I could not get them to correct it, but they didn't seem to think meter readings mattered for TOU billing. I left them with a validated read of 10122, so my total consumption using meter readings was -1,657 kWh. Whereas based on consumption it was +882 kWh.

bagand96

masonic said:

EssexHebridean said:

You wouldn’t have been a “TOU SOLR Guinea Pig” l suspect - those being SOLR’d from Tomato will go straight to an SVR tariff I would imagine - I could be wrong on that but it’s relatively unusual for anything else to happen under the SOLR regime 

I think it was the coming from TOU to SOLR that would make one a guinea pig. Complicated even more by the lack of comprehension of the role of meter readings by the failing supplier.

Usual process is to take a meter reading as close to the appointment date as possible. But then what if the final bill relies on HH data? And what if the deemed TE start read plus consumption data ends up being way off the reading you want to use to open the SOLR account?

Exactly that.  The actual ToU to SoLR SVT wouldn't worry me too much as I have no EV or batteries etc so the financial risk isn't big.

Didn't want to be caught in some grey area as you describe.  Now I'm away at a new supplier who have an opening read.  So the only exposure is my final bill (17 days) if Tomato were to fail before issuing it.

Chrysalis

decentchap100 said:

I'm still with Tomato (if they still exist) at the moment.
Billing is up to date (always has been) though my current direct debit isn't due to go out until 27th October.
I've downloaded Octobers meter readings which go until late last night so I hopefully don't get overcharged by any SOLR.
Personally I think one of Tomato's biggest mistakes has been that they didn't maintain a balance from their customers. I.e. the direct debit was only taken based on actual usage nearly a month after the energy was used. When I was previously with Octopus they took a full months payment up front to build a balance and then went from there. This would not have helped their liquidity at all which seems to have been a big issue for them.
In terms of a new supplier I really don't know where to turn.
I've had a good look around but nothing really seems to jump out at me as a good tariff.
I have an EV but rarely charge it at home due to being able to charge for free at work.
I'm able to shift a bit of usage overnight or whatever is most advantageous (e.g. washing machine, dishwasher etc) but it's difficult to shift enough to make a massive difference so not keen on some of the EV tariffs where the standard rate is a lot higher... Octopus is over 30p/kWh which would be hard to stomach.
Be glad of any suggestions, especially any less well known suppliers.
I tried Octopus Agile before I was with Tomato and it was often good but over the winter the rates were punitive so it doesn't really seem to work at that time of year. So no point going on to that now.

I dont think Octopus have ever taken an upfront payment from me.