Just had an offer from Octopus

[quicklybeendrivenmad]

Octopus energy
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Your current tariff
Flexible Octopus
Unit rates
Electricity: 27.35p per kWh
Gas: 7.28p per kWh
Standing charges
Electricity: 48.26p per day
Gas: 27.22p per day
Your new tariff options
Octopus 12M Fixed
£989.12
monthly estimate
Loyal Octopus 12M Fixed
Most popular
£945.53
monthly estimate
This tariff features 100% renewable electricity and fixes your unit rates and standing charge for 12 months. There are no exit fees, so if you change your mind, you're in control.
Your new quote
£11,869.50

God knows where these figures have come from, last months gas was £19 and Electric £180!! Who the hell would sign up to £989 per month at nearly £12k a year. Love how they say Loyal Octopus "Most popular" popular to who? Think they mean them.

Only the variable rate is capped, anyone can choose to pay a higher fixed rate

How much more expensive is it fuel wise ,to have a meter installed..
I think I’d prefer one ,but dh says the electric costs more if we have one ,and we have to pay for it’s installation

Definitely scary. I am lucky that I renewed before the madness. I am currently on a fixed rate til December 23 but having just checked my account I am nearly £300 in credit. My current dd is £86 a month and the new offer is nearly £330....that's nearly a 400% rise

A prepayment meter?

How likely is it that the Standing Charge will increase too?

I'm being offered the option to fix at 67p per kWh (currently only paying 28p). Do I fix and pay way more than I need to for Sept but hopefully insure myself against further rises come 1st Oct?!

Try the MSE calculator

Yes payment meter

Thanks Pelo. Unfortunately we're not dual fuel so it doesn't work for us

MSE shows the Standing Charge as remaining steady but how reliable is that prediction?

I think the MSE comparison tool has an option for prepayment rates too but prepayment is generally a bit higher.

My SSE one is £360 fix and pay via DD.

My current payment is £160 a month, quarterly payment.

Make it make sense

I think it’s likely that standing charges will be steady for the time being. The increased is primarily based on the recovery of costs of suppliers going out of business amongst other things. Those costs of failed suppliers are being recovered in two tranches, the main part from April 22 to April 23, and a secondary recovery from April 23 to April 24 (bit smaller). But those costs are baked in already.

The slightly unknown factor is the Bulb costs, but those won’t go into standing charges yet (maybe after April 24 I guess….)

There's something to be said for prepayment meters honestly.

In my experience (having had them in the past, and moved here which had them installed) they are FAR cheaper, although the energy companies will tell you otherwise.

I run a three bed home and gas costs me £30 per month and electricity probably less than £50 per month.

Everyone I know on prepayment concurs tbh.

They will. Look at petrol. I know it’s not back to where it was before but it has dropped from nearly £2 a litre to 1.60 odd.

Apologies I realise my post didn’t read well.

To be more concise, the increase in standing charges is primarily driven by the cost of failed suppliers (more expensive energy bought be the new supplier plus cash customers had paid in advance that the bust supplier had taken).

These costs have been calculated on the whole, so were included from April and there haven’t been new suppliers going out of business, so should broadly be stable (I think).

@Friars23 I've reported your post as it includes names and addresses etc

Absolutely ridiculous how the hell can, they charge people that much money a month. Greedy. Government are not doing anything about it. We are all doomed

I think your answer is in the fact that you’re putting the heating on at night…

I don’t think they will fall back soon, or quickly. Unless something happens to make Russian gas available gain.

The issue is that energy companies take a longer-term view on hedging, so if wholesale prices fall, but energy companies have ‘fixed’ (hedged) them high (to protect customers against volatility and ultra-high prices), energy companies won’t be able to immediately pass through lower costs because they are trapped at the hedged rate.

Plus, Ofgem have introduced a switching fee that the new supplier has to pay the old one (to pay for the cost of hedging - rightly so) and so the new supplier won’t immediately be able to offer really low tariffs.

As prices went up, lots of suppliers went bust, and if they go down quickly, lots of suppliers will go bust too as they’ll have to pay for hedging losses - with no customers to supply (if they all switch away).

The whole sector is a horror show……

Thanks @Mumtofourandnomore that makes sense.

So if I take this fix I'm being offered the gain would be prob marginal in Oct but prob significant come January but not related to the SC just the unit price.

I have always been on a pre-payment meter, what is it people don't like about them?

I'm definitely topping up more often (I don't have gas, all electric) but I'm not spending a fraction of what some of these energy companies are quoting people here. It's insanity.

@Downandout01 have a look at your unit prices and if you're on variable or a fix
I'm a low user so just thinking out loud

Showers instead of baths
I don't always wash my hands with hot water
Cut the heating, especially if you have it on at night
Look at what you cook, and maximise it - are you making a lasagne and using the oven? Stick something else in at the same time
Air fryers can be quite cheap to use
Washing - wear stuff more, hang towels to dry between uses
Changing bedding - sometimes I change the bottom sheet and pillowcases only
Put a flat sheet under your duvet cover as it's less hassle to wash and gives another layer which traps air. Fleece blanket under the bottom sheet
Hot water bottles
Turn lights off!

Hmmm, @Mumtofourandnomore , methinks you work for an energy supplier…

They're only cheaper if you use less and to use as little as you imply, you'd have to use a lot less.

The unit rates are about the same, usually slightly more. The standing charge is much more. On prepay, you're probably currently looking at around £30 in standing charge, before you use any energy at all.

Fair enough that some people operate on a 'put a certain amount on and when it's gone it's gone and I'll do without until next week/month' basis down to necesscity, but it's disengenous to imply that you can run a 3 bedroom home with typical levels of cooking, bathing, heating, laundry, entertainment etc on an average of £80 pm at current prices.