We all know there’s an energy crisis…and as I’ve been away on hols I think I’ve missed a chance to switch to a fixed tariff. I was with Avro - but am now with Octopus and in the coming weeks they assure me "we will transfer you to our award-winning customer service platform on one of our great value tariffs.
I’ve just looked at other tariffs and have found one estimating my bills at £190 PER MONTH…which is at least 100% more than I’ve paid previously. It seems there were fixed tariffs available at relatively reasonable prices up to 30th September.
Compare the market have dreamed up some alternatives but the only supplier from one of the big six is Scottish Power at £154 pm fixed till Dec 2023.
Switch Which seem to think there are no cheaper alternatives for fixed tariffs with no early exit fees.
Any advice?
I saw something on the news this morning about there not beng many if any cheaper alternatives now, what with the massive wholesale price rises in gas.
I am on a fixed 2 year term with Octopus which fortunately i started before tge proverbial hit the fan.
Really don’t think there is much you can do.
With the way the market is right now, I cannot see any point in attempting to switch. I am with a supplier that has to adhere to the cap and my tariff is now fixed until the end of April, I’d be daft to change now.
I had an email yesterday from “The Cheap Energy Club” that Martin puts his name to.
The main points are…
There are no switchable deals meaningfully cheaper than the price cap. We are in the perverse situation where there is nothing meaningfully cheaper than the default price you go to when a deal ends (or if you’ve never switched). Even though the regulator’s price cap jumped by 12% on Friday 1 October, it is still set substantially below the current cost price of energy – the main reason so many firms are going bust.
If / when you come off a fix, you will pay a lot more. There’s no getting away from this I’m afraid. Many coming off cheap fixes will find themselves paying up to 50% more than they were – when they move to the price cap – but there is currently no solution. If you do want to fix you’ll pay even more as the current cheapest fix is 30% higher than the price cap, so for most the premium isn’t worth it.
Consider the price cap a ‘six-month fix’. The new price cap rate is locked in until 1 April 2022, and it will almost certainly rise substantially again then. So for the moment consider it a six-month fix, at the market’s cheapest available rate, which you can leave penalty-free at any time.
Yes - I do understand that prices are going to up, but Octopus have put me on their “Flexible” tarrif - which is just that - NOT fixed. I would very much like to know the current price using that tariff so that I have something to compare it with. Using comparison sites I’ve had £100 per month, not fixed from SSE and £155 pm on fixed - no exit fee - from Scottish Power. BUT without knowing today’s rate using Octopus, I have no benchmark to make a comparison…so feeling a bit stuck! …and it’s one flipping thing after another …I’ve just been pinged!!!
Can anyone explain the reason for these price rises? “Wholesale” prices is not good enough, not a proper reason.
Someone sent me a video about the UK opting out of traditional energy sources before coming up with alternatives. And now we are reliant upon Russia and China.
With Bristol Energy and deal up in 42 days (they keep me updated LOL)My new deal is £1 more than I am paying now and for 2 years will be taking it over the weekend if I feel better well well enough to read the fine print.
I had to take them to the Ombudsman as they really tried it on with upping the price mid contract. I thought they had gone to the wall but believe they have been taken over but kept the name.
Worst utility company I have had the misfortune to sign up to.
I am receiving emails from Octopus requesting that l set up a Direct Debit account with them. I have already given them my gas and electric readings.
The thing is and l suppose l am being a bit paranoid but l am a bit worried about just starting a new Direct Debit via an email with a company l have never dealt with before.
What if it is a scamming email? How do l know if it’s a genuine email and not a lookalike one?
I suppose l really need to speak to a human at Octopus and not fill it out via an email.
Edited to say…I have just re-read the email. I have also been put on the Flexible tariff.
I’ve been with look after my Bills for 2 years . Because eon has gone bust they transferred me to another company ( cant remember at mo ) so I’m hoping they will insure I’m with the best for me .
Honestly I wouldn’t know what to do if I wasnt with them
Susan - I was with look after my bills and some while before my fixed deal with GREEN ended I looked at various comparison sites to see which deals they may switch me to, imagine my disappointment when they switched me from a really really good deal, at least ONE MONTH before that deal ended, to another tariff with the same company resulting in a massive increase for me! I asked them if they could switch me to my preferred deal and was told No - they weren’t able to do that. So it seems they only switch to companies they get a certainly level of commission from. It’s not the best deal for YOU - it’s the best deal for THEM.
PLEASE - look at the Trustpilot reviews on this link: Look After My Bills Reviews | Read Customer Service Reviews of lookaftermybills.com
There are lots of other independent switching companies you can use and switch to very easily. Ask on here if you need a hand, but LAMB are NOT looking after YOU!
I am afraid I am one that did not have good experience with Look After My Bills. I got a text telling me that they had found a better deal for me but if I did not want to move then text STOP before 5 pm I got the text at 7 pm, the hassle I went through trying to sort that out, the companies custoner service was appalling.
Got to say I haven’t heard from Octopus since September 29. For customers they’ve taken over from Avro, they have a webpage for information Official Avro Octopus information page - updated daily | Octopus Energy which was updated yesterday to say they will soon be sending out final bills for ex-avro customers - so after that will probably need a direct debit with them. I haven’t set a DD yet as I’d like my £100 refund from Avro settled first but I have tried to find another ‘deal’ and can’t…so it’s a suck-it-and-see situation - we’re left with no choice. I blame Boris!
Susan_m. The first thing to do if you’re going to try out the comparison sites is to find out how much energy you use annually. Have you kept copies of your bills? Or can you still access them? I’ve taken regular meter readings to check there’s nothing untoward going on here - it’s been quite useful in the past and alerted me to a faulty freezer door which caused a massive spike in my electricity. See if you can find your readings but if not, there are websites which can estimate your energy usage for you.
Even the comparison sites are telling us that there are few deals around.
Unfortunately those of you who’s utility companies have folded prepare yourselves for considerably higher direct debits from the companies you have been moved to.
Could be a very difficult winter for many families not helped by the removal of the £20 Universal Credit boost.
On a recent Martin Lewis ‘Money Programme’ he mentioned that the new company you are switched to are legally obliged to return any credit to you. It seems there are many in that situation and that’s what he said about that. I seem to recall his words were to “give it a couple of weeks”.
Do they have one of those ‘Chat online’ features on their website? That probably would confirm the email you received as genuine and it’s also possible to ‘ask’ questions and get answers quite quickly. A lot of companies now use this way of ‘speaking’ to people and from those I know who use this regularly plus my own few personal uses it does seem OK.
I used this feature when contacting BT. They usually send you a copy of the conversation via email, just for your records. (Naturally BT didn’t, but I copy pasted it anyway)
