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Had an email from octopus yesterday.... Standing charge is going from 46p/day to 60p/day.
Can someone enlighten me as to what has changed to warrant this increase?
😠
Very likely the cost of the many visits and replacements getting my smart meters to connect to their systems. Another day without power scheduled for next Monday.
Ours has gone to 64p with EON (prepayment) wanna do a swapsie? 😜
Everyone has turned the heating down. Got to keep the margins up.
Standing charge for what?
We're with Octopus and our gas standing charge is changing from 26p to 27p per day....
I am sure when we were with Bulb (now Octopus) it was £1.50 per day !
I wish the Octopus app told you how much (£) you used rather than just the KW
My Octopus (was Bulb) elec standing charge is still 42p. Not sure how long the Bulb tariff will last though, now we've migrated.
I wish the Octopus app told you how much (£) you used rather than just the KW
little slider on mine(iOS) to switch between £ and KW
I've been with Octopus for a while
33.33p/kWh, plus 41.62p/day for electricity
10.33p/kWh, plus 26.84p/day for gas
edit - I'm on Flexible Octopus October 2021 v2 tlil 1st april so rates will change soon, no doubt
This was on another thread yesterday...
https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/energy-car-price-rise/page/10/
My new charges from Shell...
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I've had an email regarding Gas prices. They charge me 5p/day more because I don't have a direct debit for "admin purposes" I just pay online when they eventually sort the monthly bill.
Gas is actually going down! By 0.05p/kwh...
My Octopus (was Bulb) elec standing charge is still 42p. Not sure how long the Bulb tariff will last though, now we’ve migrated.
Also been moved over from Bulb, looks like our standing charges per day are:
Gas - 28.48p
Electric - 43.26p
First quote I had last month for my business energy I had was a £1.02 standing charge (three year locked in contract)....
If your paying for domestic energy, just go else where....
This is my app (iOS) I cant see a toggle?
v3.59.0. but I'm on a standard tarrif not a variable one like it looks like you are.
Eon have done the same
Elec was 45p/day now 50p/day
Has was 28p/day now 29p/day
Clearly the thieving twonks aren't making enough money now that everyone has cut their energy usage.
I don't find the app very good (so don't use it in general) - but web based account is very good, including future projections, etc.
I'm not hung up on the mix of SC vs Unit, and at the risk of offending my stalker it's only £4 a month but I wonder if the SC is driven by their fixed costs such as salaries, insurance, rent, etc. which have all gone up and the Unit charge is the bit they compete on - but in the end it's the total that matters and as per thread yesterday, even before the supposed reductions in wholesale prices feeding into consumer deals to come in mid year, my forecast for the year is slightly cheaper than last.
Why is everyone says it’s a ripoff? Wages have gone up, materials have gone up, insurance has gone up, fuel has gone up. Few if any of these things will come down again.
64p does sound expensive.
We just got moved from bulb to octopus.
On the pay monthly variable tariff- so as to avoid going into credit by several hundred pounds every year- ours is:
Electric 33.01p/kWh and 49.55p/day
Gas 10.24p/kWh and 28.48p/day
if it’s a lot cheaper to set up a monthly DD at a fixed amount again I might look at that in a few months.
Also bulb advertised prices excluded vat according octopus
They charge me 5p/day more because I don’t have a direct debit for “admin purposes” I just pay online when they eventually sort the monthly bill.
The admin won't be to cover your account - the admin cost will be to cover all those who don't pay on time and they have to chase. DD's will cost them less to administer.
You may pay when the bill is sent, but there will be 1000s who won't.
I think I heard somewhere (but could be wrong) that a chunk of standing charge relates to the cost of taking over failed energy companies. It sounds like a lot but is a drop in the bucket compared to my current bills anyway...
Hmmmm, came for stories of 8 armed security octopus, was hoping for laser beams.
I'm a little disappointed.
I believe that the standing charge is to do with "Green levies". From memory these are waited in such a way that each consumer contibutes the same to these. I've always thought that it should be added to every unit. This would mean the rich and most polluting contribute more
Sharkbait are you on a fancy tariff? My flexible octopus one has gone up a few p for both gas and electric. Electric unit rate down slightly. Which whilst good is mildly annoying as the return on solar biz case is based on unit prices going up!
I just got the letter and it may be good news - Octopus Pay Monthly Variable Tariff in London:
Elec. Standing charge from 38.9p to 42p
Elec. Unit Rate 35.1p to 33.9
Estimated annual saving of £40
Gas Standing charge from 28.4p to 27.4p
Gas Unit Rate 10.3p to 10.2p
Estimated annual saving of £21
Wages have gone up
At the same rate as inflation?
Just install Oct-Aid and generate yourself an API key. Not as pretty as the official app but sooooo much better data.
https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/octo-aid/id1567821974
Octopus here, no increase.
Bigdean, just set up min DD of 5gbp pcm, it restores you to DD tariff. Tell them it's 5 fixed or they ll try and take loads off u.
I don’t have a direct debit for “admin purposes” I just pay online
Why on earth would you do that?
Wages have gone up,
Yours might have. Mine sure as shit hasn't.
Octopus standing charge is always going to be more than others due to the number of legs required...
Why on earth would you do that?
I've seen numerous people post on here about energy companies taking amounts of money that bear no resemblance to the amount of energy used. By submitting a meter reading when requested I get a bill which equates to what I've actually used.
My supplier wanted me to set up a DD of £80/month for gas when I moved in. I'd be about £4k in credit now if I'd said yes and have massive overdraft fees.
The standard charge is a rip-off, I use around 2kw a day so the charge is a large amount of my bill, I think the charge should be related to how much electricity you use.
Octopus standing charge is always going to be more than others due to the number of legs required…
That deserved more recognition.
I’ve seen numerous people post on here about energy companies taking amounts of money that bear no resemblance to the amount of energy used. By submitting a meter reading when requested I get a bill which equates to what I’ve actually used.
My supplier wanted me to set up a DD of £80/month for gas when I moved in. I’d be about £4k in credit now if I’d said yes and have massive overdraft fees.
That's down to your tariff, not your payment method. The cheaper tariffs want you to pay the same every month so that summer offsets winter (and of course, the money sits in their account rather than yours). It's annoying but the alternatives are more expensive overall.
I asked Shell to return my credit earlier this year. It was significantly easier than pissing about making manual payments every month.
The standard charge is a rip-off, I use around 2kw a day so the charge is a large amount of my bill, I think the charge should be related to how much electricity you use.
counter - you still use the same amount of infrastructure, wires and pipes, still occupy the same space in a junction box, still have the same amount of admin in servicing your account, etc.?
My supplier wanted me to set up a DD of £80/month for gas when I moved in. I’d be about £4k in credit now if I’d said yes and have massive overdraft fees.
No, you wouldn't though. Because your DD would have been adjusted once they found out usage, and you can ask for the excess back. Sure, there are incidents where this might have happened and where people have built up massive balances but that's the nature of anyone with a problem rushes to talk about it, the majority whose account runs smoothly just don't.
FWIW, I adjusted my DD when my daughter went off to University (because, less showers and electricity ) and they were happy to allow it. Then, my DD was still too high and my balance built up so I got them to send me £100 back which they did. I might ask for another £100 depending how cold April is.
I’ve just had an email from octopus. The electric standing charge is increasing to 54p a day. The usage is decreasing to 32p per kWh. Gas s/c decreasing a penny a day, price per kWh stays the same. Bills predicted to reduce by about £24 a year. £21 of that is the electricity going down.
Re direct debits. I have one set up to pay the monthly bill amount in full. Bulb took it out on the 15th of the same month. Looks like octopus are taking it out on the first of the next month. So I’ve had a month off fuel bills this month.
I think I heard somewhere (but could be wrong) that a chunk of standing charge relates to the cost of taking over failed energy companies. It sounds like a lot but is a drop in the bucket compared to my current bills anyway…
Yep, you heard correctly. That whole debarcle had to be paid for somehow and while that is not all of it, it certainly counts for some of the increases.
The standard charge is a rip-off, I use around 2kw a day so the charge is a large amount of my bill, I think the charge should be related to how much electricity you use.
On the other hand we all need the same infrastructure to get the power to our house. That is what the standing charge is paying. Along with covering the cost of failed energy suppliers.
Got my bill today. Gas last month just over 1000KWh. Down from 1800kWh the same month last year. New boiler.
Am I thinking right here?
The cap effectively means that all companies will be charging the same, as everyone charges the maximum amount allowed. However, this cap is of course for the 'typical' household, which I am not.
Therefore the balance of unit rate/standing charge across different suppliers will still mean that some are cheaper than others, depending on how much you use, and actual bills will be very different to the cap.
So, as a very light user I'm better off finding one with a high unit rate but low standing charge.
As an illustration, my total bill for a week less less than three years has been £54.91 thanks to £600 of taxpayer funding! My tarrif is sconing to an end and my standing charge is going up loads.
.
So, if the above is correct who has the lowest standing charge? I'm really not fussed about unit rate prices as I use so little. Would a prepayment meter with no standing charge work for me or will it be a pain in the bottom?
Am I thinking right here?
Yes, you are. Mostly.
Look at the total annual cost for the energy you use, including standing charge. Base your decisions on that.
You may get a 15p cheaper standing charge, but if you use 2kwh a day at 10p over your previous standing charge, it will still cost more.
Would a prepayment meter with no standing charge work for me
Pretty sure all the prepayment meters still have standing charge.
@andrewh - yes. The cap or energy price guarantee is a misnomer. I wrote a long post in the 'Not putting heating on' thread a month back, pasted in here. Numbers have changed since but the concept is the same.
The £2500 ‘cap’ (actually energy price guarantee) is a misnomer. That’s based on a fictitious average household, based on their usage the bill would be £2500. If you use more than this average house, you’ll pay more. The rate doesn’t change at this cut off – there is no cut off.
OFGEN set a cap which is the maximum amount suppliers can charge for their energy on a per kwh basis which the results in a theoretical max price (again based on a standard household). It’s higher than the EPG. If you use more then you’ll pay more than the current £4279. The suppliers can sell their units for less, but not more. The market’s supposed to regulate what the charge, if someone’s overcharging – move supplier.
Right now the Gov is paying the difference between the supplier market rate and the EPG rate to the suppliers for us.
Then in addition the Gov is ALSO giving us all £400 towards whatever our bill is. That comes off your bill if you pay it (monthly / quarterly / whatever), or if you pay by monthly DD it’s applied as a credit.
This last bit is wrong IMHO, that’s going to every household from the richest to the poorest and that relief should be aimed at those that need it most.
Another Shell customer here, I got this
Your electricity rates are changing from 31.871p to 31.924p per kWh. Your electricity standing charge per day is changing from 49.93p to 57.03p.
Your gas rates are changing from 10.200p per kWh to 10.234p per kWh. Your gas standing charge per day is changing from 28.48p to 29.11p.
7p more than Muffin for my leccy standing charge, marginal differences for everything else
Just had my new gas prices from SSE, apparently I might save 76p
No idea what my PAYG electricity prices are at the moment.
On the other hand we all need the same infrastructure to get the power to our house. That is what the standing charge is paying. Along with covering the cost of failed energy suppliers.
I’m sorry but that’s incorrect on the infrastructure. The wire to your house was paid for when it went in. The rest of the grid has costs related to the amount of energy used but the number of consumers.
Back in the day the fixed charge was a much smaller fraction of bills
The fixed costs is to do with an unfair means of paying green levies. It might relate to the cost of failed companies. But again that’s crazy. IMHO it would be better to add the cost of each unit
Ovo have started offering a fixed tariff to existing customers
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-65080014
I read this as being an attempt to tie customers into deals before a 'price war' starts later this year.