NPower gas 'sculpting'

Taffyscot

It is late and I am tired but I have a question to ask DD. I phoned up Npower and they explained my bill to me which actually worked out with all the sculpting for Feb, March and May. I unfortunately joined by defaul in February when high sculpting was in place. The next few months will be at 1% so would I be better off staying put for the next few months. Our usage will be very low over these months as we will not be home for 6 to 8 weeks visiting family. I am sorry that I do not understand all this completly. I was thinking of changing to Scottish power's fixed rate until 2011 but wonder if I should stay now. Am I right in my thinking or not? Thanks DD

c0113tt3

If you have not changed / switched already, then you might as well take advantage of very low sculpting of tier 1 kwh through summer, but by mid summer you want to be applying to switch to another company as it takes anything between 6 to 10 weeks to switch.

Something else to keep in mind is that gas / elec is likely expected to rise again in summer and even again after that in winter time. So, that will reset the tariff year at least another once or twice, which overall you will end up paying more than the 4572 tier 1 kwh in what we call a year again.....

Ultimately everyone needs to move away from npower, but first check if you have a min contract with them. Also during winter time, npower are exceptionally expensive due to the sculpting.

Taffyscot

thanks co that's what I thought. taffy

DirectDebacle

I agree with COs' view. Only thing I would add, and this is very subjective, is how desperate are you to get away from npower. Personally I can't wait and applied to switch at the end of March, like so many others having felt the full force of winter weighting and overcharging. Stuff their 1% (if it stays that way) I don't want anything to do with them. Also bear in mind that if you are such a low gas user in the summer then whoever you are with your bills will be low. I was told 4-6 weeks for a switch. That is if everything goes smoothly. I am not optimistic on that score but npower are full of surprises and it might be ok??? (watches another flock of pigs fly past the window)

Taffyscot

Yes I agree totally DD and I will leave as soon as it is financially better for me. We had someone come and read our gas meter the other day and he said Npower is the most expensive company out there. What you see is not what you get on their quotes. DD you are so knowledgeable about these things if I went with Scottish Power would I be better with the standing charge or not? I hope that is what it is called I am brain dead it's been a tough day.

DirectDebacle

I'm tired too Taffy. Let me know what price plan you are considering with SP, will there be D/D discounts will you have dual fuel that sort of stuff and I'll have a look over the weekend.

Taffyscot

Thanks mate. Aye direct debit, dual utilities and fixed rate until 2011. Especially with oil reaching new all time highs today. So maybe I should just do it now as it will take so long anyway. Scottish power say that you can opt out of it at any time if fuel prices go down and it will only cost £1.50 per utility per month extra than the normal rate. Seems too good to be true especially as quidco has a payback of £72.00 if you switch to Scottish Power. There are 2 kinds of fixed rates and as I am quite a low user I haven't worked out yet which one would best suit me. I need a clear head to work on this. Thanks for all your help DD

Anne3333

Following a news report on the BBC this morning regarding the misselling practices of NPower, I have written to them regarding our issues and suggested they may want to follow this story. I have sent the link to this discussion, so they can get a clear idea of the underhanded practices of NPower!

c0113tt3

The Guide to Switching Away from Npower

Npower are renoun for rejecting switching services. The general rule of things is if you owe them more than £100 they automatically refuse, so make sure you give accurate readings and pay them asap. Also when you get a switching date (from your new supplier), you are only meant to give the new supplier the readings and then they pass them on, that process can take upto 4 weeks (but usually 2 weeks) especially for the gas as it has to go through transco first. So taking that into account, give Npower final readings as well, as it makes sure they do at least get the final readings quickly, but usually can not act upon them until it has come through your new supplier / transco. If after 4 weeks from the date of switch Npower claim that your new suppliers readings have not come through (from your new supplier and/or transco), your new supplier can re-apply / re-send again, at this point in time your new supplier has more control in the matter. In general its best to act as a communicator between both companies of the current status in switching.

Make sure during the period of switch / final readings, you keep regular contact with npower and your new supplier to find out your status of switch, ie. if transco / new supplier have passed on the readings. I would recommend contacting them at least twice a week during that period, giving assurances to Npower that it will be paid straight away, and write down who / when you spoke to. During this time, you may wish to negotiate with Npower to get your account flagged up to automatically approve the switch, regardless of what you may owe them, even if you get the flag onto your account (usually takes a couple of days), the switch may still get rejected due to the flag being reversed !! (usually billing reverse it)

Hopefully it should run smoothly, but very often Npower reject switches, hence keep in contact with them at least twice a week during that period. If you find out Npower rejected the switch (billing department / team), assure them you will pay what you may owe. They will also inform you that you need to contact your prospective new supplier to re-apply again !! for new switch dates (and your new supplier will contact you if the switch failed). This is in fact a ploy to make it more difficult to switch, they have a procedure called D68 FLOW, this reverses the rejection and takes 24 hours to go through, generally they wont inform you about this, and some staff dont even know that this procedure exists. Be firm with Npower and hold your ground. You may find it usefull for your new supplier to help on your behalf too in this situation. If your new supplier gets involved and experiences the difficulty you are having, they may offer a small compensation payment as encouragement to switch.

Also check any final bills from Npower, especially if you switch around the time of price increases and got your prices frozen at the previous rates, they often bill you at the new rates !!. If you encounter any of the problems above then make a complaint to Npower, as you may get a small reduction in your final bill for the hassle / problems / mistakes. Once switched and paid your final bill with Npower, get a letter from them confirming your account is cleared and the account is closed. Also with your new supplier, confirm everything is correct, especially imperial / metric meters, and how you wish to be billed / when.

Hope the info helps, and yes all of the above happened to me, and had to do all of the above.

I noticed bbc news this morning, mentioning npowers door step sales mis-selling and all sorts of trickery to get you to sign up to them. This has been in the media for several weeks now, but its no longer isolated sales teams and is widespread throughout the country.

DirectDebacle

Anne3333 wrote: »

Following a news report on the BBC this morning regarding the misselling practices of NPower, I have written to them regarding our issues and suggested they may want to follow this story. I have sent the link to this discussion, so they can get a clear idea of the underhanded practices of NPower!

I sent loads pf emails to various organistions/newspapers. Only response I got was from my MP who is looking into it. Until today. Got a reply from The Times (money desk) A reporter is doing a story on npower 'customer mistreatment' quote. He wants to speak so I am looking forward to our chat, whenever it takes place.