Outfox Energy

Brie

TheMilkmansDad said:

Brie said:

I had to calculate my years expected payment based on last year's use of gas and electric and using this year's rates.  I've had to do this with most suppliers when they suggest a ridiculous increase.  I even had to do it recently with my water bill.  Every time I do this the customer service person (Outfox, Eon, water co, etc) agree that the amount for the DD is too high for the amount I use in a year but usually come out with something like "having it this high will keep your account safe".  Which is tosh as far as I'm concerned.  I can pay for what I use but I won't pay for them to hold my money when it could be in my bank account getting me interest.  

I say challenge them and tell them no you won't pay that much.  

Without knowing what hey should actually be paying it's hard to say "Tosh" as they could be correct in asking for it.

We need to know actual usage KwH and the tariff they are on rather than £ as it seems the OP is misunderstanding who the system works.

It is tosh if they agree that my figures are correct and theirs are overinflated.  And that has happened every single time I've done this.  They figure out what I might need to pay in a year and add an extra 30% "to be safe".  No. 

One company used the amount of energy used in a very cold January as the monthly average and then admitted they multiplied that by 14 (not 12) to get the annual use and divided it by 10 (not 12) to get the monthly DD.  That was complete and utter tosh.

Yes the OP needs to actually look at and understand the bills and once that happens then start a conversation with Outfox to get an appropriate DD set.   

debitcardmayhem

Brie said:

TheMilkmansDad said:

Brie said:

I had to calculate my years expected payment based on last year's use of gas and electric and using this year's rates.  I've had to do this with most suppliers when they suggest a ridiculous increase.  I even had to do it recently with my water bill.  Every time I do this the customer service person (Outfox, Eon, water co, etc) agree that the amount for the DD is too high for the amount I use in a year but usually come out with something like "having it this high will keep your account safe".  Which is tosh as far as I'm concerned.  I can pay for what I use but I won't pay for them to hold my money when it could be in my bank account getting me interest.  

I say challenge them and tell them no you won't pay that much.  

Without knowing what hey should actually be paying it's hard to say "Tosh" as they could be correct in asking for it.

We need to know actual usage KwH and the tariff they are on rather than £ as it seems the OP is misunderstanding who the system works.

It is tosh if they agree that my figures are correct and theirs are overinflated.  And that has happened every single time I've done this.  They figure out what I might need to pay in a year and add an extra 30% "to be safe".  No. 

One company used the amount of energy used in a very cold January as the monthly average and then admitted they multiplied that by 14 (not 12) to get the annual use and divided it by 10 (not 12) to get the monthly DD.  That was complete and utter tosh.

Yes the OP needs to actually look at and understand the bills and once that happens then start a conversation with Outfox to get an appropriate DD set.   

Problem here is the OP cannot realistically challenge them, their initial DD was far too low , and they are going to end up in more debt. They need to work out what their DD should have been, then work out what the way forward is,.

QrizB

Four pages in and we still don't have even the basics.

BubbleResident said:

I entered all the usage data when I made the switch and the deal was confirmed. 

What usage data did you enter? How many kWh of each fuel per year did you tell OFTM that you were expecting to use?

What was the Estimated Annual Consumption on your last Octopus bill?

What tariff (how many pence per kWh, and pence per day, for each fuel) are OFTM charging?

luci

QrizB said:

Four pages in and we still don't have even the basics.

BubbleResident said:

I entered all the usage data when I made the switch and the deal was confirmed. 

What usage data did you enter? How many kWh of each fuel per year did you tell OFTM that you were expecting to use?

What was the Estimated Annual Consumption on your last Octopus bill?

What tariff (how many pence per kWh, and pence per day, for each fuel) are OFTaM charging?

I have a horrible feeling that the OP didn't enter their usage in kWh. I am now suspecting they entered an amount in £.

mebu60

Also, I'm miserly with my heating (unless my partner and/or daughter are here when I can be in t-shirt and they are still cold) and I pay £100pcm on a decent (Octopus) fixed rate which is about right across 12 months, building up a nice credit in the summer. £70pcm minus the standing charge is not going to buy a lot of energy. 

victor2

This looks like yet another example of somebody confusing their DD amount with the actual rate charged per kWh of usage. Further complicated by suppliers now following OFGEM guidance and keeping accounts always in credit. This defeats the original idea of fixed contracts and a "fixed" monthly payment unless the usage varies from the estimate provided at the start.
Unless the OP comes back with the original figures provided and rates offered, we can only guess...

matelodave

TBH £70 a month is really an unfeasible low amount to pay for your energy. Just the standing charge would account for at least £200 possibly more if you've got both gas and electricity. That effectively lease less than £50 a month for your consumption.

Most people, unless they are incredibly frugal are never going to get away with much less than £120-£150 a month unless they have solar panels, batteries and don't use gas.

You really do have to do proper calculations based on your actual consumption over the past 12 months, not some airy-fairy guesstimate from a sales person or a website.

Others have asked what your actual (not estimated) consumption is, both gas and electricity in kwh, not £££'s, Armed with that info you can work out roughly what you should be paying. If you cant answer those questions then you won't know what you should be paying.

Keep_pedalling

BubbleResident said:

luci said:

BubbleResident said:

Quite possibly; but when I've signed up for deals like this before, the headline figure (eg, £70 or whatever a month) is what I've ended up paying for the duration of the deal.

How much were you paying with your previous supplier?

I was with Octopus, who had just said they wanted to raise my rate from about £120 to £170 a month. Hence the move.

If you really want help here can you please give us some idea of how much energy you are actually using. Also are OFTM billing you on actual meter readings or estimates? 

born_again

BubbleResident said:

luci said:

BubbleResident said:

Quite possibly; but when I've signed up for deals like this before, the headline figure (eg, £70 or whatever a month) is what I've ended up paying for the duration of the deal.

How much were you paying with your previous supplier?

I was with Octopus, who had just said they wanted to raise my rate from about £120 to £170 a month. Hence the move.

Sadly you missed that while Octopus say they want to raise your rate, you can lower it back down again.
Octopus say mine should be £202, yet I'm only paying £100 which is just over my monthly usage at the moment. Still having a £500 credit helps.

TheMilkmansDad

born_again said:

BubbleResident said:

luci said:

BubbleResident said:

Quite possibly; but when I've signed up for deals like this before, the headline figure (eg, £70 or whatever a month) is what I've ended up paying for the duration of the deal.

How much were you paying with your previous supplier?

I was with Octopus, who had just said they wanted to raise my rate from about £120 to £170 a month. Hence the move.

Sadly you missed that while Octopus say they want to raise your rate, you can lower it back down again.
Octopus say mine should be £202, yet I'm only paying £100 which is just over my monthly usage at the moment. Still having a £500 credit helps.

But the OP's issue is the understanding of how it works. You know how it works and changed your DD accordingly. OP doesn't so left. Octopus could have been correct in raising it but they may not have been. Without knowing the OP actual usages it's all guesswork.