Octopus Snug and Switching Problem

Parslee

I switched to Octopus Snug in September last year and since then have been unable to obtain Economy 7 quotes, all the comparison websites think I'm on a normal tariff. I did speak to someone at Octopus about this a while ago but just got "it wouldn't be us" which was very helpful!! Just wondered if anyone else had encountered this before I figure what to do about it.

Swipe

If I were on Snug, I'd be staying on there as you won't be able to get back on. I doubt you'll find anything cheaper on E7 at the moment. Even UW is more expensive from 1st April.

QrizB

Just wondered if anyone else had encountered this before I figure what to do about it.

Octopus sometimes change the MPAN for smart tariff customers. This can cause problems with the automated quote engines not then recognising that you've got an E7 system.

Look at a recent Snug bill and compare the MPAN to an older E7 bill. Is your profile type still 02, or has it been changed to 00?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meter_Point_Administration_Number

Parslee

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81939327#Comment_81939327

Yes you're probably right, I was a bit miffed yesterday when I got the email from Octopus saying rates were going down when it's only the day rate reducing, the off peak rate is staying the same, the standing charge is going up and they've reduced the export tariff as well so I'm probably going to be worse off.

Parslee

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81939360#Comment_81939360

On original bills it was 2 but now it's 02 so don't know what to make of that.

QrizB

02 is still E7, as far as I can tell.

Depending on the comparison site, you can often toggle a setting to make them to give you E7 quotes even if they don't otherwise want to.

Parslee

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81939535#Comment_81939535

I couldn't see that anywhere will have another look.

Reed_Richards

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81939470#Comment_81939470

Aren't supply companies "cheating" if they take advantage of what is supposed to be a price reduction to render some customers worse off? Shouldn't the supply companies at the very least be obliged to give consumers the opportunity to opt out of any change they don't want to have? If this happens to me I would write to my MP.

Scot_39

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81939625#Comment_81939625

The £150 average budget change was not the only govt / Ofgem price change for SVT in the April cap, the obvious biggies being the £69 extra on network costs - and the £18 on CMS in the wholesale costs - more than overcoming the underlying £57 in direct wholesale costs - with some +/-£x pound changes elsewhere.

Those network costs do not go to Octopus - they go to others.

Snug is not fixed - it's variable - and has AFAIK - seen day rate changes since launch.

From memory the last couple of times the caps have increased - Octopus have held the 9p rate and only increased the day rate (on at least one occasion by more then the e7 peak rate (when e7 off peak rate also increased) - so it's arguably only unwinding that protection of the 9p now.

Others on UW are facing the removal of their really sub 10p rates - as low as 6p - so seeing big increases - as UW changing their chosen balance under the multirate average / total cap price.

And if you have a look you'll see Ofgem SC changes again have been very regional - some losers (c+6p SScot for instance) some winners (c-4p N Scot)

AFAIK SEG rates are also not protected - didn't one tied Octopus rate drop from 15p to 12p recently.

Yet still around 2-3x what is on offer as a non TOU rate elsewhere ?

QrizB

Aren't supply companies "cheating" if they take advantage of what is supposed to be a price reduction to render some customers worse off?

OP's Snug is a flexible rate and can change whenever Octopus chooses. Typically they've been adjusting their flexible tariffs at the same time as they adjust their SVT, so every Jan / Apr / Jul / Oct.

I'm guessing that OP's standing charge is changing to match the new SVT standing charge.

Octopus also tend to accommodate other price changes in their smart tariffs by keeping the offpeak rate but changing the peak rate.

(I seem to have said much the same as Scot_39 wrote above. He hadn't posted when I started writing!)

Reed_Richards

I really cannot keep up with the multiplicity of Octopus tariffs. But I take the point is that @Parslee may be worse off after 1st April, but would have been even more so were it not for the government initiative.