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Hi,

Today I received notice that my current tariff “OVO 1 year fixed v23 EPG - Economy 7 EPG 01 October 2022” is coming to an end so need to renew.

The letter has to be the most confusing I have ever encountered.

Firstly, my current tariff:

The letter states that the day following, I’ll move on to the “variable plan, Simpler Energy” which appears to be:

ok, so far so good,  But, there is also a variable plan if you pay on demand:

Firstly what is prepayment?  I currently pay by direct debit so how does this differ?

Apart from, probably the obvious, but why not automatically move me on to this if it is cheaper?  The variable tariff I’ll be moved on to by default will presumably be going up in April too.

There is also the section regarding available plans:

Now, the “Simpler Energy - Economy 7” variable tariff has day night rate of 41.98p / 24.27p and standing charge 39.02p with an estimated annual cost of £1900.50 but the “OVO Simpler Energy - Economy 7 01 January 2023” variable tariff mentioned above has day night rate of 39.98p / 23.11p and standing charge 37.16p with an estimated annual cost of £1900.51 - Assuming I’d use the same amount of energy on both tariffs, why is the yearly cost almost identical the the day, night and standing charges are all lower on one tariff compared to the other identically named tariffs???

 

Next, why is the “Pay as you go” variable tariff more expensive at £2252.44 year compared to the “OVO Pay As You Go - Economy 7 01 January 2023” variable tariff at £1600 per year - whats the difference?

 

The same problem with “OVO Pay As You Go - Economy 7 01 January 2023” variable tariff which has day night rate of 37.85p / 18.49p and standing charge 42p with an estimated annual cost of £1600.85 but when compared to “Pay As You Go Economy 7” variable tariff which has day night rate of 39.75p / 19.42p and standing charge 41.1p also with an estimated annual cost of £1600.85.  So the annual cost is the same but the the day, night and standing charges are all lower on one tariff compared to the other identically named tariffs.

 

Can anyone please translate this into English.  Seems OVO has just slapped random numbers on several sheets of paper under slightly different headings and are expecting people to translate this...

One or two forum members have already gone through this and deciphered what they can. I think @Firedog might be best placed to help when back online. It does seem rather confusing

Updated on 24/04/24 by Emmanuelle_OVO:

Want to see your plan or renew? Check out our helpful tutorial collection: 

 

 

@BPLightlog Not sure I can help here, but here’s my best guess at an interpretation.

 @cos I assume that the curious end date marks the end of a contract started last April whose rates changed on 1 October to bring them under the EPG limit. I find it strange that all the available tariffs are included; I wasn’t given that choice when my fixed-rate plan came to an end a few weeks ago.

The E7 tariffs will use the historical night/day mix to arrive at an annual cost. It’s a shame that the usage only shown as the sum of both. 

The expensive plans aren’t distinguished in your screenshots, and whoever compiled the email may well have forgotten this vital detail: they are most probably for those who prefer to pay On demand, often referred to as ‘on receipt of bill’. So there are six tariffs in all; your screenshots numbered 1-6 show them like this (I think!):

 
Payment method		 Flat rate
 		 E7 dual rate
 
On Demand 5 4
Direct Debit 3 1
Prepayment 2 6

 

 

The plans without the E7 designator show what would happen if all usage were charged at the same flat rate. This will be cheaper if the night usage is less than about 42% of the total, except for PAYG plans - see below.

PAYG is Pay As You Go, also known as Prepayment. This is currently the cheapest option (despite what you read in the papers) for many users. It’s E7 variant is particularly good for those using, say, night storage heaters so that more than 32% of their consumption is at the cheap rate. You pay in advance for what you think you’ll need in the immediate future (this can be done online). This graph may make things clearer:
   

 

These monthly costs are calculated using current rates for the East Midlands region. They will be slightly different for other regions, but the relationship between the various tariffs should remain more or less constant. I could have used the figures from your renewal offers to mark where you fit, but it’s a bit late just now. Let me know if you’d like (me) to work through them.

 

Having said all that, things are all set to change from 1 April with the increase in the EPG price cap, which may or may not happen. There will be even bigger changes (for the better) on 1 July. We may even see the return of fixed-rate tariffs in the not too distant future, with a bit of competition between suppliers. It’s a good job you’ve got a few weeks’ grace to make your mind up in.

 

Many thanks for your input @Firedog and @BPLightlog 😁.

There’s a lot to read through and understand so I’ll give that a go and see which one works out the best in my situation...

Why if my two year fixed rate started in Oct 2022 doesn’t it finish Sept 2024 It says it finishes in June 2024

Hi @chasinthepark ,

This question is better directed to Support via https://ovoenergy.com/help .

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