Switching energy provider, do I need to wait for contract end date to pass?

mrcheez

My contract with my current energy provider ends on 28 Nov, but I know who I want to switch to for the next contract.

Do I need to wait until 28 Nov before I apply to the new one, or can I sign up today and they just wait until the other one ends before proceeding?

goldenhoarde

mrcheez wrote: »

My contract with my current energy provider ends on 28 Nov, but I know who I want to switch to for the next contract.ete before

Do I need to wait until 28 Nov before I apply to the new one, or can I sign up today and they just wait until the other one ends before proceeding?

You'd need to wait as once you sign up the process will start and could complete before the 28th breeching your current contract

mrcheez

goldenhoarde wrote: »

You'd need to wait as once you sign up the process will start and could complete before the 28th breeching your current contract

So generally speaking when you switch provider every year the date of switching tends to run a couple of days after the date you signed up the previous year?

e.g.
year 1: contract starts Nov 28
year 2: contract starts Dec 03
year 3: contract starts Dec 07
year 4: contract starts Dec 11
etc

CoBo55

I would wait until the 29th to start moving or they could sting you for an early termination fee.

mrcheez

obviously there's no risk of the contract auto-renewing? I basically just get charged the standard rate once the contract ends, rather than any special rate I was on?

L1011

You will revert to their 'standard rate' which is up to 30% higher than what you'll be on depending on supplier

It always takes a few days to work through but there is no way to know how many days that is, so basically your switch date does slip year on year.

naughtysmurf

I check my email, if I received my welcome mail from provider 1 on September 1 2019, then I switch to provider 2 September 1 2020, switch too early & there may be penalties

mrcheez

Just discovered my old provider charged me €50 as an exit fee, and the last invoice says the account closed on the 28th November (i.e. the last day of the contract with them).

This is despite me actually doing the switch on the 29th November.

Granted it was close, but since no action was actually performed on the 28th it seems daft they entered "28th" as the closed date.

Would that be caused by my new provider sending them the date as 28th November?

CoBo55

mrcheez wrote: »

Just discovered my old provider charged me €50 as an exit fee, and the last invoice says the account closed on the 28th November (i.e. the last day of the contract with them).

This is despite me actually doing the switch on the 29th November.

Granted it was close, but since no action was actually performed on the 28th it seems daft they entered "28th" as the closed date.

Would that be caused by my new provider sending them the date as 28th November?

That happened to me with Energia they amended the bill with the €50 removed and long before the DD was due. It didn't matter in the end because they contacted me offering me the same discount (26%) to stay with them.
I'd contact them as soon as possible before your account and details "disappear" from their system.

mrcheez

CoBo55 wrote: »

That happened to me with Energia they amended the bill with the €50 removed and long before the DD was due. It didn't matter in the end because they contacted me offering me the same discount (26%) to stay with them.
I'd contact them as soon as possible before your account and details "disappear" from their system.

yeah the DD has already gone around 2 weeks ago... didn't check bill till now.

Anyway I won't stop till I gets my €50 back

CoBo55

mrcheez wrote: »

yeah the DD has already gone around 2 weeks ago... didn't check bill till now.

Anyway I won't stop till I gets my €50 back

You're right too, they'd hound you if you owed them 50 blips.

stronglikebull

mrcheez wrote: »

yeah the DD has already gone around 2 weeks ago... didn't check bill till now.

Anyway I won't stop till I gets my €50 back

A SEPA direct debit can be reversed by you. You contact the bank, or most will let you start the process through your online banking. If you get it reversed, just pay the actual amount you owe them. Ask them to amend and reissue the bill.

mrcheez

stronglikebull wrote: »

A SEPA direct debit can be reversed by you. You contact the bank, or most will let you start the process through your online banking. If you get it reversed, just pay the actual amount you owe them. Ask them to amend and reissue the bill.

I got the old supplier to refund me... only took a day thankfully

Makes me wonder how many people this happens to that don't check their bill. The bill amount wasn't particularly high with the €50 added so I assumed it was a normal monthly charge. I only happened to be glancing at it and noticed the small print about the fee.

tuisginideach

A complete beginner's question to which I can't find an answer - if I switch from Electric Ireland (20+ years) to energia or the like, am I only switching the billing method etc - I presume there is no change to the actual electricity supply/supplier?

L1011

Just changing the billing, there is no physical change. Same applies for mains gas.

duffman13

mrcheez wrote: »

Just discovered my old provider charged me €50 as an exit fee, and the last invoice says the account closed on the 28th November (i.e. the last day of the contract with them).

This is despite me actually doing the switch on the 29th November.

Granted it was close, but since no action was actually performed on the 28th it seems daft they entered "28th" as the closed date.

Would that be caused by my new provider sending them the date as 28th November?

Was it Electric Ireland? Twice i left them after a contract expired and twice id to chase them to refund me the termination fee. Seems like a common occurance from them

tuisginideach

Thanks L1011 - I couldn't actually see that printed anywhere!

CoBo55

There's a good offer on the choosy site. Switch to Panda Power through them, 30% off and €150 credit on your first bill. My contract with energia ends tomorrow I'm moving on Thursday. It isn't available from Panda directly you need to start from the choosy site.

mrcheez

duffman13 wrote: »

Was it Electric Ireland? Twice i left them after a contract expired and twice id to chase them to refund me the termination fee. Seems like a common occurance from them

yup

Ger Roe

goldenhoarde wrote: »

You'd need to wait as once you sign up the process will start and could complete before the 28th breeching your current contract

That bit of confusion annoys me and I wonder why the energy regulator hasn't sorted it out.

Sometimes it is difficult to determine when your switch actually happened. Why are the providers not obliged to highlight the expiry date of your contract prominently on each bill?

And why can you not activate a switch like your car insurance where you can specify a date from when the new service takes over?

mrcheez

Ger Roe wrote: »

That bit of confusion annoys me and I wonder why the energy regulator hasn't sorted it out.

Sometimes it is difficult to determine when your switch actually happened. Why are the providers not obliged to highlight the expiry date of your contract prominently on each bill?

And why can you not activate a switch like your car insurance where you can specify a date from when the new service takes over?

A good rule of thumb is to assume that the second you click "Submit" is the date your change happens.

That's what happened to mine, even though I didn't get the acknowledgement mail for a few days after.