Getting a new energy tariff - or not

Tim Streater has brought this to us :

But even then, they run as more or less two independent businesses of generation and retail.

alan_m formulated on Thursday :

Cheapest can change very rapidly, even week by week, which is why each company has so many names for their tariffs like V21.5 and there are always special offers if they are wanting to increase their customer base. The trick is to find a particularly good offer, during the last few weeks of your annual contract with your present supplier, then switch - before your present supplier moves you onto one of their 'standard contracts'.

Exceptionally - I didn't change supplier at the end of my last annual contract, I spotted a better contract tariff for this year with my present one and I'm now paying 15 to 20% less than I would have been to a new supplier, with a new contract. My present new tariff was only available for a short while and I didn't really expect them to allow me to take it - as an existing customer.

alan_m explained :

I think they are legally obliged to let you know when your contract is coming to an end. Certainly every company I have been with recently, has emailed me to let me know and advised what tariff I would be moved to at the end. Even if they didn't, I'm signed up with MSE to let me know and make suggestions as to which supplier and tariff would be my best one to move to.

I get the same notices for car and house insurance, changes in interest of banks and investments, pensions etc..

They are effectively giving you credit for more time than monthly. Which is going to cost you more. I don't think any of the best deals do quarterly.

As opposed to privatized, where the incentive is to make the maximum profit.

I think ofgem requires them to contact you at the end of a contract ...

This is getting interesting. I am now with British Gas after an enforced switch from Ebico / Robin Hood Energy when the latter went into administration. I was told existing terms would continue. The account is described as a monthly direct debit but the bill (which I cannot find on the website) seems to cover three months. There are various adjustments (miscellaneous documents) so the position is difficult to track. They also seem to have put me on a fixed price tariff. I would have liked to check if that is what I was on before but the Ebico website has been taken down.

It happens that Dave Plowman (News) formulated :

But against considerable competition vying for our custom, so the net result is much cheaper for us. I think that is important.

I think the counter-argument is that you are paying the correct amount instead of allowing the supplier to pick a higher amount then refund you - or not - at the end of the year.

Not here. You are sent a water bill, and are shown the various ways to pay it. There is no reduction for paying by DD.

Indeed. I'd not looked at that site before. Thanks for the notice.

A decision to make.

But not with water, for some reason.

So we have lots of companies with lots of duplicated overheads selling exactly the same product. And all making a profit. Which makes absolutely no sense at all.

My monthly DD is based on my use the previous month. Meters are read monthly. And I can check on my account whether there is any long term discrepancy.

Not for domestic water supplies, but you can switch for businesses, e.g.

That is just as good - possibly better from the budgeting point of view. I think the criticism is where suppliers estimate a whole year and set an average, which is typically higher than the actual usage, leaving a credit at the year end.

Strangely overheads tend to scale with the size of the company, with large companies having disproportionately higher overheads.

Competition will also have effect of reducing those overheads. Hence the numbers of small companies, rather than one big, efficient one.

So it really isn't that simple.

They might appear but they are mirages.

The only tariffs with decent prices are dual fuel deals for some fixed period with billing online only and paid by monthly direct debit. It helps to know your exact annual usage to get to the optimum deal.

I find it incredibly frustrating that you cannot just download a table of numbers showing the various fixed charges and rates.

PS I have found the paperwork. It's called 'variable direct debit'. I cannot find any any specific mention of frequency of payment but it says '1st day of the month' so I assume it is paid monthly.