OVO have sent an email about my Direct Debit - Why are you increasing my monthly payment when I’m already in credit?

Hey ​@Nige12rose,
 

I understand your frustration, 

We have made the change to build one month's usage credit by the end of the winter period on our customers accounts. This credit will help to cover any changes to your energy usage or costs throughout the year leading to a smoother payment journey. Your Direct Debit is managed to ensure that you do not build too much credit on your account and also ensures your account does not fall into arrears should anything change with your usage. If you do build more credit on your account than is needed, we will recommend you reduce your payments or alternatively, you can request a refund at any time Our recommended Direct Debit amount is a suggested amount to ensure you pay for your predicted energy and don't end up with any debt or too much credit by the end of the Winter period. Your energy costs may go up or down throughout the year and we want to support you with those changes. Paying by Direct Debit helps to spread those costs so you don't end up with large bills to pay, and paying by Direct Debit is one of the cheapest ways to pay. 

How we work out your Direct Debit amount

The aim is to make sure you have credit for 1 month’s payment in your OVO account by the end of March. This is to help cover any change in your home energy use over the course of the year. 

For new customers, this only comes into effect once you’ve reached March. When you first join, the aim is to make sure you have no balance left to pay after 1 year.

Your Direct Debit payment amount will be regularly reviewed to make sure it still covers your home’s energy use.

Why is my Direct Debit increasing when my balance is in credit?

It’s normal for a credit balance to build up in your energy account over summer, when energy use is usually lower. This credit can help pay for your energy in winter, when most homes use more. It helps you spread your energy costs over time. Even if your energy account is in credit, sometimes your Direct Debit payments still need to increase.

This could be the case if we’ve worked out that your OVO account is likely to have a debt balance long term – based on how much energy your home is predicted to use. 

You can always choose to get a credit refund if you prefer. Request one at any time in your online account, in our app, or over the phone. You just need to leave credit in there for 1 month’s payment. This is in line with our refund policy.
 

Why have I been informed that I need to increase my monthly payments from £280 to £195 when I am £629 in credit.

It’s likely based on your usage that by the year end there will be a short fall if payments are not increased. That’s the likely answer for your query but it is worth taking up with customer services to check your usuage and estimated bills across the year. 

There is no need to increase your payments. Just ridiculous. 

Hey ​@Polb65,

Welcome to the community! 

It looks like your payments have decreased from £280 to £195, which is a good change! Are you sure you’ve understood the message correctly about your payments not going down while you're in credit? If you have any questions or concerns, I recommend reaching out to our friendly Support Team. They’d be happy to review your account with you! I've included their contact options below for you.

My bills are roughly £187 per month and im £352 in credit, ovo are asking for £240 a month which I feel is excessive, and I can’t lower it.  I’ve never missed a payment and have always paid more. 

Morning ​@Slr75,

How long have you been on supply with OVO now? Will this be your first winter on supply with us?

Please could you also confirm whether you have smart meters that are giving readings?

I’ve been a customer for about 6 or 7 years and yes I have a smart meter. 

​@Slr75 if you’ve been with us that long and have smart meters the usage data we hold for you should be bang on accurate.

For peace of mind, what you could do is calculate your annual usage against your rates and standing charges, to work out your average monthly cost. You should then find that the average cost will be around £240 per month.

For example:

Electricity

Take today’s read and the reading from the same date last year, and subtract last year’s from this year’s. This’ll give you your annual electricity usage eg:

Today’s reading (5500) - reading from 21/11/2024 (3000) = 2500kwh per year.

You can then multiply this figure by your unit rate eg (example unit rate 22.5p/kwh):

2500 x 0.225 = £563 per year.

You’d then need to add on the standing charge eg (example standing charge 28p per day):

0.28 x 365 = £102.

You then add together the two annual figures, and make sure to remember the 5% VAT on top eg:

£563 + £102 = £665

£665 x 1.05 (5% VAT) = £698 per year electricity inc standing charges and VAT.

Gas

The same calculations as above, but first you’ll need to convert your gas usage to kwh’s (your gas will be recorded on the meter in cubic metres) eg:

Today’s reading (5500) - reading from 21/11/2024 (3000) = 2500m³ per year.

You then need to convert the 2500m³ to kwh. To do so use this calculation:

2500m³ x 37.5 x 1.02264 ÷ 3.6 = 26,631kwh

You can then take the figure of 26,631kwh and do the exact same calculations as in the ‘Electricity’ section above.

Once you have the total costs of electricity and gas usage, plus VAT and standing charge, you can add these together and divide by 12 to get your average monthly cost. 

We convert your metered gas units to kWh using the following formula: Metered volume × metric conversion factor* × daily calorific value** × 1.02264 (volume correction) ÷ 3.6 = 2 kilowatt hours (kWh) used.

*We convert the gas use into kWh according to your meter type – 2.83 (imperial) or 1 (metric).

**The calorific value of gas changes every day and can range from 37.5 to 43.0. To find out calorific values used to calculate your charges you can visit: https://data.nationalgas.com/find-gas-data

I hope this helps!

I have an electric car, my direct debit covers what I use and more. My company also pays for any electric used by my RV charger.

I'm massively in credit (nearly half my yearly usage!) OVO keep putting my DD up as they don't count the payment my company puts in as a payment.

I'd rather have the money in my account!