Whys my fixed tariff increasing?

cheesecake28

Sorry if this has been asked loads of times…

Just had an email from my energy provider saying my monthly payment will be increasing on 28 sep.

We're on a fixed tariff. It ends on 5 oct this year.

Only 2 of us here and I can't see that its because we've been using more energy than usual. Theres nothing extra we've been using than before.

2 weeks ago we had a new smart metre fitted. The display unit is still not showing our usage.

Energy provider said to give it 28 days to connect up.

We are also about £200 IN credit so i don't understand it.

Email says:

' We can see you're not currently paying enough each month to cover your energy costs.

As you're on a fixed tariff your current price per unit will stay the same, however the total amount you're paying for your energy is increasing' I don't understand this.

' Your direct debit could be changing because:

your tariff has changed

your energy usage has changed

you've missed a payment

you lowered or increased your Direct debit '

I don't think any of those reasons apply.

Could someone explain in simple terms why this could be?

I'm wondering if its something to do with the new smart meter, but i phoned up about it and the provider said there were no faults showing.

Isthisforreal99

Only £200 in credit now isn't going to be enough to be in credit over winter particularly if your fixed tarrif ends soon as any new tarriff is likely to ve more expensive.

born_again

A fixed tariff is not a all you can eat buffet. You still have to pay for your usage & your usage is not being covered enough by your monthly payments.

Ayr_Rage

They are taking into account two things, your existing credit will be eaten up over the winter months and your fix ends in less than a month and prices go up unless you do something about it.

As you are within the period where you can change penalty free, it's time to get off your backside and search for a new tariff.

If your IHD hasn't connected give your provider a call, especially if your METER is working correctly.

Scot_39

Fixed Rates - Not Fixed Price

As you're on a fixed tariff your current price per unit will stay the same, however the total amount you're paying for your energy is increasing' I don't understand this.

If your using more kWh than they assumed or when the DD was set-up - of metered energy - the annual cost increases.

If you hadnt been submitting readings regularly - the smart meter fitter would have sent them your old meter final readings - which might have forced an annual consumption update and so a DD recalculation.

So likely they just think £200 is just not enough autumn credit to cover winter - you say £200 credit - but we would need that in scope of annual costs - like how many months of your normal DD.

2-3 months is not an abnormal target for going into winter if use a lot of energy for winter heat - or use less but heat expensive conventional electric like me.

I am expecting to only be around 2 months in credit when get my bill for Aug - Sep - and for me I think that likely too low - but my winter costs as an all electric home tend to rise more than a lot of gas users might.

My provided dropped the DD in spring - which I thought abnormal - and so when the July cap put my annual forecast up about 5% - I just put the difference /12 back on the DD myself. In retrospect maybe I should have put their c£10-15 drop back on too.

oldernonethewiser

It appears to have been fully explained in the email from the energy company.

Direct Debits can go up and down but the Standing Charge and Unit Price don't change when on a fixed tariff.