Symbio bust, how to avoid a Smart meters.

[Chris Bacon]

The reason that smart meters are being pushed is the electric car. It would not do to have huge peaks in demand for charging. Everything else about them is peripheral to that.

[Muddymike]

Join Octapus energy. They gave me the option of having one or not.

Mike

[Andrew]

If you want their time-of-day tariffs that give you 5 hours of cheaper power, where you can choose the time window then a smart meter is necessary.

[Theo]

Unfortunately those tariffs are now priced the same as everyone else's new-customer tariffs for the rest of the day, so they're more expensive on the daytime rate than the capped tariff you might already be on. You might need a significant overnight load (say an EV) to make it pay.

Theo

[Michael Chare]

I have to wait until the government moves me to another supplier who will no doubt charge more. I do wonder why they don't let Symbio just charge their customers more. I think it was Octopus who were not accepting new customers a few days ago, now they want 26.19p per kWh plus 24.03p per day.

[Jeff Layman]

I've been on EDF standard variable for years (too idle to change). They sent me notification a month ago that the rate would change on 1 October from 19.84 to 21.78 pence per kWh with a standing charge change from

28.64 to 28.69 pence per day.

Does that mean new customers are getting hit with a much higher charge per kWh at Octopus than on of the "Big 6" standard variable? I assumed new SV customers at EDF would get the same as I've been quoted.

[Theo]

The government's business model seems to let companies who failed to plan for the price rise will go bust, rather than allowing them to continue to trade. Instead they will subsidise a different company to take on their customers. In times past getting a boatload of new customers is a thing companies would pay good money for, but now those customers are loss making so they have to be subsidised to do it. And then maybe we will see one of the acquiring companies go under, and the dominoes go on.

All the while they insist the price cap is protecting consumers. When in fact it was not designed for this at all, only to protect consumers on default tariffs of predatory legacy energy companies (ie those who don't switch).

It's a mess...

Theo

[alan_m]

I seem to remember somewhere reading that Symbio (management) had other problems.

Octopus have just taken on close to 0.6 million new customers!

[alan_m]

I doubt if the government is subsidising anything.

[Andy Burns]

Not even any shortfall in customer credit balances to the gaining supplier

[charles]

remember "Government monsy" is collected from the taxpayer.

[alan_m]

The customer is still liable for any debts associated with unpaid energy use.

The credit owing to customers comes from the industry levy that all utility customers pay (including customers of the companies that went bust).

[Andy Burns]

but would any "missing" credit be a cost to the new supplier, or handed to them via OFGEM?

[Andy Burns]

Why not just escrow it?

I see earlier in the year OFGEM were concerned that the level of credits had built up to £1.4b

[newshound]

I imagine it will be like my offer from E.on, their lowest cost variable rate tarriff.

I'm not.

Also mildly appalled at the Tory claim as to how much people are protected by the price cap.