Energy Prices (Strictly NO referrals!)

Shoza said:
How do you “win” against energy companies? I’m with OVO and have been for 8 years. Never in debt and always paid by Direct Debit. Current DD is £125 a month.

Combined usage for last three months:

June - £58 (on holiday 2 weeks but before we started looking at usage in the house)
July - £105 buu had fans running a lot due to heat wave
August - £91 whcih is after we turned off a 20 year old fridge and switched all the remaining bulbs to LED

Electricity is around £55 a month and fairly static throughout the year so 80% on that would be £99 a month

Gas usage is 40 a month in winter so 80% on that would be £72 a month.

Total - £171 in winter. Less £66 from government = £105 and my DD is £125 with the £250 credit…

OVO want to put out DD up to £325 a month from September to cover predicted usage. I didn’t agree when I phoned them and even with the the 80% increase it doesn’t add up. I explained what we’d done this year to reduce usage including new double glazing everywhere, 600mm of loft insulation, new roof and repointing and draught proofing. We also have a log burner and 1 ton of wood purchased ready for winter.

After explaining all this the advisor said there was nothing they could do to change the DD amount. I also asked to be out on whole amount Direct Debit and they refused because I’m not on a working smart meter - I have one (gen 1) but it has no signal in a solid wall Victorian basement.

I’m currently waiting for the complaint to be handled but just don’t see how they can get away with unilaterally upping my DD to an amount that high when I don’t agree to pay it. I’m also £250 in credit at the moment but they said I will use so much energy between now and September 2023 it needs to go up to no less than £325 to cover this. Again nothing they can do to change it.

If I come off the DD the tariff prices go up so I’m being held hostage to what I can / need to pay at the moment.

Any suggestions?
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What were your units used last winter per month ? Better to work out your new usage/cost at the new 2022 October cap this way as the cap has changed since last winter and the 80% increase is on the April cap which you wouldn't have been on.

October 2021 cap was 4p a gas unit so you are looking at approx 350% increase on the October cap coming in this winter compared to last. Even more if you were on a fixed deal over 2021 winter mine is going up almost 700% as I was paying just over 2p a unit.
 
I can see electric theft via EV chargers becoming a thing - People 'borrowing' your driveway/charger while your away etc

How many people bother to lockdown their home charger either with a software setting/disconnect switch/physical lock ?
 
Shoza said:
How do you “win” against energy companies? I’m with OVO and have been for 8 years. Never in debt and always paid by Direct Debit. Current DD is £125 a month.

Combined usage for last three months:

June - £58 (on holiday 2 weeks but before we started looking at usage in the house)
July - £105 buu had fans running a lot due to heat wave
August - £91 whcih is after we turned off a 20 year old fridge and switched all the remaining bulbs to LED

Electricity is around £55 a month and fairly static throughout the year so 80% on that would be £99 a month

Gas usage is 40 a month in winter so 80% on that would be £72 a month.

Total - £171 in winter. Less £66 from government = £105 and my DD is £125 with the £250 credit…

OVO want to put out DD up to £325 a month from September to cover predicted usage. I didn’t agree when I phoned them and even with the the 80% increase it doesn’t add up. I explained what we’d done this year to reduce usage including new double glazing everywhere, 600mm of loft insulation, new roof and repointing and draught proofing. We also have a log burner and 1 ton of wood purchased ready for winter.

After explaining all this the advisor said there was nothing they could do to change the DD amount. I also asked to be out on whole amount Direct Debit and they refused because I’m not on a working smart meter - I have one (gen 1) but it has no signal in a solid wall Victorian basement.

I’m currently waiting for the complaint to be handled but just don’t see how they can get away with unilaterally upping my DD to an amount that high when I don’t agree to pay it. I’m also £250 in credit at the moment but they said I will use so much energy between now and September 2023 it needs to go up to no less than £325 to cover this. Again nothing they can do to change it.

If I come off the DD the tariff prices go up so I’m being held hostage to what I can / need to pay at the moment.

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
I’m in a very similar situation, with OVO, similar previous usage, 25% reduction month to month since jan, same current DD to the pound. Also 350 in credit. Interested to see what they try to do to my DD, had nothing at present as I accidentally fixed a couple of weeks ago due to how pathetically east it was to fix by pressing one button in the app which was right next to the expand drop down to see costs. I expect I’ll have the same issue at the end of sept.
 
Loagi said:
I can see electric theft via EV chargers becoming a thing - People 'borrowing' your driveway/charger while your away etc

How many people bother to lockdown their home charger either with a software setting/disconnect switch/physical lock ?
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Mine is locked apart from during the allowed charging time overnight. If it’s plugged in it also can’t be unplugged by some random.
 
Shoza said:
See my calculation above (edited post) - still doesn’t add up!?
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But what is your Kwh useage for last 12 months for elec and the same for gas?

Quoting ££ is not of any real help without knowing your actual useage over a time period

For example I'm currently paying £260 a month based on the current SVR from April.

My typical annual useage for elec = 5600Kwh

My typical annual useage for gas = 19000Kwh

So in terms of cost for;

elec = 5600 x 0.28p = £1568
gas = 19000 x 0.074p = £1406

Standing charges;

elec = 365 x 0.478p = £174.47
gas = 365 x 0.272 = £99.28

Add them all up = £3247.75 / 12 = £270 - which is about right for what I'm paying currently, with around £650 credit.

Now replace those with the new SVR rates from October comes to a total of = £5993 / 12 = £500 So I'm expecting my DD to be raised to that amount.
 
Goodie said:
I’m in a very similar situation, with OVO, similar previous usage, 25% reduction month to month since jan, same current DD to the pound. Also 350 in credit. Interested to see what they try to do to my DD, had nothing at present as I accidentally fixed a couple of weeks ago due to how pathetically east it was to fix by pressing one button in the app which was right next to the expand drop down to see costs. I expect I’ll have the same issue at the end of sept.
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I'm with ovo I've gone from £150 to ,£25O ,(750 in credit) to £350.

In sorry but it's how much it's going to be if you are in credit in march you can withdraw it.
 
But they don't pay interest on your credit - they use your credit to buy futures contracts. Sometimes they get their hedge betting wrong and go bust. The cost of the bust companies then gets added to everyone's standing charge. This is a national scandal !
 
rumple9 said:
But they don't pay interest on your credit - they use your credit to buy futures contracts. Sometimes they get their hedge betting wrong and go bust. The cost of the bust companies then gets added to everyone's standing charge. This is a national scandal !
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Ovo do pay you interest on your credit. 4% I think.
 
LabR@t said:
I'm with ovo I've gone from £150 to ,£25O ,(750 in credit) to £350.

In sorry but it's how much it's going to be if you are in credit in march you can withdraw it.
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Yeah I get that, I've tried to build up a healthy credit over the last 4 or 5 months, thinking that with the additional 400 we should be a million miles off. I think we should run at about 300-350kwh at worst through the winter for elec. In the last 12 months we usually top out at 200kwh for gas, apart from Dec-Feb which went to about 1000, should be allot lower than that this time around.
 
Rilot said:
My buddy was complaining to me last night that his Tesla Model Y will cost more to charge at home than my petrol car does to fill up.
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Thought it was getting close. Didn't think it was at crossover point!

Going to give all the eV haters a massive amount of ammunition
 
413x said:
Standard tariff.
I bet not everyone is on a computer eV tariff
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surely that goes down to the EV owner making poor choices then. last time I filled up (,diesel) it was 194.9 (ouch) but I was on my way back from hols and on the motorway service station I *could* have paid £2.19.9 if I wanted to... but had I of done that I would have been making a very bad buying decision .
 
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