Difference between tariffs at Switch and Renewal?

I think it will be a shock for some just how high their bills will be over the summer and how high their DDs get after 1st April. 

The DD calculator doesn't include the 1st April increase yet as far as i know, be interesting to see when OVO tweak the DDs. I expect this will cause a run of posts on the forum as the calculator will then look ahead 12 months after the update with the higher rates, including next winter. All the increase will fall on the unit rates i suspect. We can probably work out illustrative figures for a few customers if necessary on a few threads in the future. 

Also the Energy Bill Support scheme finishes in March and won't be available as a universal offer next winter. 

It is going to get much harder for a cohort of customers unfortunately. 

More important than ever for people to get smart meters to get to know their usage. Or at the very least take manual readings more frequently than they usually do. 

Jeff, I don’t know who marked this as the answer to my question, but IMO it’s not. Both images illustrate the standard variable E7 tariff for my postcode in the EMEB region. The renewal page shows the rates for 1 Oct - 31 Dec 2022. The switch page shows the rates as they will be from 1 Jan 2023 until they change again. It’s underhand to suggest that if I do nothing, the renewal rates shown will apply. This could have misled me and dissuaded me from switching to a different supplier. I can see no reason why the two TILs can’t show the same data.

As regards the EPG, there’s very little room for further increases. To arrive at the advertised Estimated Annual Cost of £881, we have to assume that 42% of the Assumed Annual Consumption is charged at the cheaper rate. I’ve no idea where this figure comes from.
  
2190 x .42 =  919.8 x .2298 = £211.37
2190 x .58 = 1270.2 x .3955 = £502.36
Cost of electricity = 211.37 + 502.36 = £713.73
Standing charge: 365 x .4585 = £167.35
Annual cost = 713.73 + 167.35 = £881 as advertised above.

 £713.73 for 2190kWh equates to 71373/2190 = 32.59p/kWh
  
which is only 0.7% below the EPG rate of 31.25 X 1.05 = 32.81p (East Midlands Region, Jan-Mar 2023)

Hey @Firedog,

I’ve responded to you on this thread:

They are showing you the current rates as of now, because that is what you’d pay now. VS what the rates will go up to as the rates for your region will be changing shortly. 

So you have both the current rates, and what they will go up to in January. If you were currently on the Variable Tariff you would have been sent a communication advising you what your rates will increase to.

OVO aren’t offering a ‘renewal’ option at the moment, as there is no point having fixed tariffs. So all customers will ‘roll onto’ the variable plan at the end of their contract. 

Just wanted to add that you are in the rare situation of being on the old, current rates for a short period of time at the end of the month, then you’ll move onto the new rates in January.

So if you wanted to work it out you could use the current variable rates multiplied by the days at the end of December you’ll be on the Variable plan. Then after that, you’ll be on the January rates, until these change in April. 

Thanks, Emmanuelle, but that won’t wash. Rates are either today’s rates, which are current, or they’re next month’s rates, which aren’t current. The Renewal page, showing today’s rates as if they are the ones I’d be charged, is the one I’m directed to from the OVO account home page. The Switch page, showing the true picture, I was referred to from a third-party comparison site. Deliberately misleading existing customers to dissuade them from switching to another provider is sharp practice. But perhaps ‘renewal’ means something different in OVO-speak.

While I’ve got your attention, could I pose a supplementary question?

Because the E7 rates have increased so dramatically, I can no longer afford to heat my house with electricity. Even so, I have so far been able to make use of the (2020) E7 tariff to minimize the costs. This will no longer be the case once I’m rolled on to the SVT, based on my usage pattern for the past six months. It would in fact be slightly cheaper, and much more convenient, to use the single-rate tariff. 

I can’t do anything about the wiring or the meter (it’s a rented property), but I understand it is possible to apply the same single rate to both registers, which would have the same effect. How do I go about arranging this - quickly - without using the telephone which I’m afraid I’m unable to use for making calls?

The last time I asked for a tariff update to the meter (they’d got it wrong at one stage), I did it by email and it took weeks, and even then it was still wrong. The right figures have always been used for billing, so I’ve let it ride. But now I gather that even the email option is no longer available. I’m sure I’m not the only customer not able to use the phone …

Hey @Firedog,

The transfer process from one supplier to another takes a minimum of the next working day so if the current rates were given to new customers, this would be inaccurate as they will be on January’s rates from the moment they are on supply with us.

If a customer is on the Variable Tariff currently they would have already been advised of the price increases in January if they are affected. 

You seem to be in the less common situation of rolling onto the variable contract just before the price increases in January. 

Great question! You are able to choose to be on a single rate tariff if you’re Economy 7. However as the rates will need to be verbally agreed, I’m afraid you will need to call Support.

Hope this helps. 

If you need to, you can use SignVideo with OVO now, as well as Relay UK.

The Relay UK number to call is 18001 0330 303 5063. Or for SignVideo, you can select OVO from the list at https://signvideo.co.uk/sign-directory/

@Emmanuelle_OVO 

Just to correct what you said, a switch can be done in as little as 2 days (as per the thread you linked to), not a minimum of 5 working days as you've said.

Sorry @nealmurphy!

Was a busy day yesterday- I’ll get that updated now 😊

Thanks again. No, my fixed-rate plan ends on 8 January. I’ve now been able to calculate the likely costs using the single-rate and dual-rate figures for 1 January - 31 March, using data from the past six months. The single rate tariff is definitely more advantageous.

I decided to brave the webchat option. I only waited about 15 minutes for an advisor to pitch up, and I think he understood what I wanted to do. The chat ended a bit oddly, though, leaving me scratching my head:
 

How do I make sure that the SMART team gets the message? There was no mention of a requirement for oral confirmation.

@Blastoise186 Thanks so much for the Relay UK suggestion. That looks like a possibility, although it only mentions people with hearing difficulties. There’s nothing wrong with my eyesight or hearing - I just have a problem with telephones.

Happy New Year, everybody 🍾🍾🍾