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

GSV3MIAC2

not so easy in this business,where you need a license, and where the major suppliers will be reluctant to get within punt pole length of ex TE mgmt.

debitcardmayhem

All I can say is passata

lohr500

EssexHebridean said:

I particularly enjoyed "We will sort it all out as part of the SOLR process" - umm, no matey, you will have nothing to do with the SOLR process, having proved yourselves to be unfit to have any involvement at all! 

Was it really the software platform that sank them, or the fact that they were determined to gain customers at any cost and so sold energy at rates that simply can't have been sustainable - before realising that a lot of the customers they had attracted as a result didn't have meter types they could cope with!  From the outside looking in it just feels like people wanting to play at running a business, but not having half the expertise they needed. 

All the above in my opinion!!!

kb_money

maybe slightly off-topic but if anyone is with Good Energy, please could you tell me:

is their customer service reasonably good ?
does their user website show you daily usage/cost (like octopus) ?
does export get deduct from monthly bill or is it refunded annually ?
is there a clause to prevent negative bills (export > import) ?

thank yoy.  their EV tariff looks very attractive for home battery.

Spoonie_Turtle

Interesting part of the press release:

"Earlier this year Ofgem also introduced the Supplier of Last Resort (SoLR) Levy Offset rule, which will ensure the costs claimed by energy companies under the SoLR levy, for taking on customers from firms that go out of business, will be the liability of the failed supplier. The new rule will ensure that, where funds remain available, keeping costs low for customers will remain the top priority."

Nice idea in theory, but isn't the whole problem of suppliers going bust that they don't have funds available?  Adding more debt to their balance doesn't mean it'll get paid.

Eh, I guess that's verging on political.  It's just frustrating that they've been allowed to rack up debt and one way or another we'll probably end up paying for it* while the people who made the decisions leading to all that debt will likely feel no real consequences.

[*Although I recognise that thankfully it's not as costly as protecting credit balances for customers when tens of suppliers went bust in quick succession.]

born_again

Doc_N said:

GingerTim said:

Farouk speaks - slightly less bullish. Though what 'we will resume Tomatopia (or a derivative of it) soon' means is anyone's guess. Not sure that's in his gift...

Sadly for both the business and the consumer worlds, it’s all too easy for the directors of failed companies to ditch all the debt and start all over again with another company. Very often, indeed, the same company - minus its debt of course.

Lets hope that Ofgem, ensure that any of the directors or family of them. Are never let lose in the energy supply market again.

MeteredOut

born_again said:

Doc_N said:

GingerTim said:

Farouk speaks - slightly less bullish. Though what 'we will resume Tomatopia (or a derivative of it) soon' means is anyone's guess. Not sure that's in his gift...

Sadly for both the business and the consumer worlds, it’s all too easy for the directors of failed companies to ditch all the debt and start all over again with another company. Very often, indeed, the same company - minus its debt of course.

Lets hope that Ofgem, ensure that any of the directors or family of them. Are never let lose in the energy supply market again.

Do Ofgem have any powers to block an energy licence to a company due to its ownership, or relationship of its owners to certain individuals? 

MWT

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Nice idea in theory, but isn't the whole problem of suppliers going bust that they don't have funds available?  Adding more debt to their balance doesn't mean it'll get paid.

I suspect that move was in response to one or two suppliers with creative company structures ending their supply business while there were still funds in the entities.

This let them close the business down but not have to handle all of the costs of buying energy at short notice for example. 

MWT

pmduk said:

Let's hope Companies House prevents some individuals from being Company officials in the future. I have sympathy for all customers should BG be appointed as SOLR

Very unlikely unless the administrators come across some significant transgressions during their work.

Where the administrators were also advisors to the company before they entered administration they tend to have made sure the directors were not doing anything stupid before proceeding, so it is not likely that there will be enough to have individuals sanctioned. 

Newbie_John

So my last bill for October is to be taken on 10 November.. will it be taken? Should I cancel beforehand?

Or just let it happen and forget about them? (I've left already).