Off-peak tariff, does it really save money?

[JohnW2]

It's called Loyal Octopus 14M Fixed

Fair enough, but is it significantly cheaper than any other suppliers single-rate tariff?

Octopus's "USP" is obviously the range of 'smart' (i.e. 'multirate') tariffs they offer.

 

[fixitflav]

Fair enough, but is it significantly cheaper than any other suppliers single-rate tariff?

I don't know, to be honest, I haven't done a comparison recently. The previous tariff was comparable with other suppliers', and this one is a tad cheaper, with the figures used. Maybe in practice there won't be much in it.

 

[ericmark]

If one is only using electricity, no export, then it is a little easier. Single rate, 29.57p per kWh and 61.21p per day standing charge, is relatively easy to compare with 25.37p per kWh and 68.17p per day standing charge. (British Gas v Octopus) but once one starts to look at off-peak, standard, and peak both export and import, it becomes a minefield, specially when some tariffs are published, but few can actually get them.

Offer and actually get, as I have found, are not the same. And to work out costs, one needs not only to know how much used and produced each day of the year, but also at what time.

If I look at last year. All the data is month by month, I can look at each day of each month, but looking at what was used at what time.

I have no idea what was between 00:00 and 05:00 or 02:00 and 05:00 or 16:00 and 19:00 which are the time when the rates change with split tariffs. I have looked back with the other displays, and 6th of February 2025 is the furthest I can go back.

And the time I am interested in is December and January. December I see I used 416 kWh, the highest of the year. When I changed supplier, I lost all the information on what I used. Well, lucky I recorded it all, so December with and without standing charge, but this does not tell me how many days I ran out of battery before 7 pm. Not something I considered needed recording at the time.

 

[JohnW2]

I don't know, to be honest, I haven't done a comparison recently. The previous tariff was comparable with other suppliers', and this one is a tad cheaper, with the figures used. Maybe in practice there won't be much in it.

Indeed. I would be surprised if there is any appreciable difference between suppliers, at least as regards standard 'variable' single-rate tariffs (since virtually all suppliers are currently setting them at the Ofgem 'cap').

There may be scope for a little variation between suppliers regards prices for 'fixed' single-rate tariffs, since different companies may be taking different 'gambles' about what wholesale prices (and the 'cap') will be doing in the next year or two.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I don't think that many of the Octopus tariffs could 'work' without a 'smart' meter, could they?

From feedback I've read, some customers manage to go on Smart tariffs, at least temporarily, until they get their SM's fitted, by reporting the readings - their website has an option to do this. They also have a workaround for when SM's fail to report in.or miss readings, by calculating what would normally be used at certain time periods.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Fair enough. A plumb standard single-rate tariff obviously can (and, you confirm, does) 'work' without a 'smart' meter, but the great majority of people who go to Octopus do so because of their various 'smart tariffs', which obviously cannot work without a 'smart' meter.

I must confess that I didn't even realise that Octopus offered a single-rate non-smart tariff, and I'm a bit surprised to hear that it's cheaper (for you) than a previous supplier - I thought that all suppliers were currently charging at the Ofgem 'energy price cap' for such tariffs!

I cannot imagine there would not be some financial benefit to be had, for agreeing to have SM's fitted.

 

[JohnW2]

I cannot imagine there would not be some financial benefit to be had, for agreeing to have SM's fitted.

One imagines that most suppliers will offer (potentially financially advantageous) 'smart' tariffs (which would obviously not be possible without a 'smart' meter') to those who agree to have a 'smart' meter.

However, for those who choose to remain on a 'single-rate' tariff, I doubt whether agreeing to have a 'smart' meter offers any appreciable financial benefit. That was certainly the case when I had a 'smart' meter installed in a house I own, following which there was absolutely no change in anything 'financial'

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

However, for those who choose to remain on a 'single-rate' tariff, I doubt whether agreeing to have a 'smart' meter offers any appreciable financial benefit.

Then (apart from the 'appreciable') you would be wrong. For the time being, until I know what's happening with prices, I've moved from the Tracker, to a Fix. The Fix was I took was expensive, but not nearly so expensive as the CAP, neither that, nor obviously the Tracker, were available to those without an SM.

 

[JohnW2]

Then (apart from the 'appreciable') you would be wrong. For the time being, until I know what's happening with prices, I've moved from the Tracker, to a Fix. The Fix was I took was expensive, but not nearly so expensive as the CAP, neither that, nor obviously the Tracker, were available to those without an SM.

As I've said before, if one has a single-rate tariff, it will (currently) be priced at (or close to) the 'cap' IF it is a "standard variable-rate tariff" BUT many/most suppliers will offer other (single-rate) tariffs (such as 'tracker' and 'fixed' ones) which may well be (subject to the quality of one's 'crystal ball'!) cheaper.

However, being single-rate tariffs, none of those actually require a 'smart' meter, so it's difficult to see why suppliers should offer any better deal of this type to people who agree to have a 'smart' meter. However, that assumes that suppliers are sensible in their thinking, which is not necessarily the case!

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

However, being single-rate tariffs, none of those actually require a 'smart' meter, so it's difficult to see why suppliers should offer any better deal of this type to people who agree to have a 'smart' meter. However, that assumes that suppliers are sensible in their thinking, which is not necessarily the case!

Lots of good reasons, why the SM's offer advantages to suppliers...

They are much more theft resistant, suppliers know your consumption daily, which makes their consumption/supply prediction much more accurate, they don't need meter readers/or to pester their customers to provide readings. Finally, SM's have the ability, in an absolute emergency, to isolate individual consumers.

 

[JohnW2]

Lots of good reasons, why the SM's offer advantages to suppliers... They are much more theft resistant, suppliers know your consumption daily, which makes their consumption/supply prediction much more accurate, they don't need meter readers/or to pester their customers to provide readings. Finally, SM's have the ability, in an absolute emergency, to isolate individual consumers.

I don't deny any of that, but none of those advantages other than (perhaps - but see below) the lack of need for meter readers is likely to represent a significant financial benefit (in relation to the 'big picture') for suppliers.

Even the 'meter reader' thing is probably seriously overplayed. I have relevant records going back only about 17 years but in that time there were only 4 readings taken by meter readers (the rest of the readings having been provided by myself), so it was not costing them an appreciable amount to read my 'dumb' meter

 

[ericmark]

This View attachment 378760is not what I expected. The last time I was on a single rate, my battery was 3.2 kWh, now I have 6.4 kWh and last couple of days, it has lasted until dawn, so this month using off-peak average was 6.9 kWh which will cost £0.62p per day and with no off-peak average 2.23 kWh which will cost approx £0.37p per day. I simply had not checked how a second battery would change the results, with one battery lasting until the morning any time of year was not going to happen.

The whole reason for moving to Octopus was to get paid for export, once that happens then a completely different ballpark.

As to tariff, it is in the lap of the gods, on another thread there was talk about Octopus Go, each time I looked seemed to get different information, then found there are three Octopus Go tariffs. And I failed to find out was payment for export was with Octopus Go, again finding different figures come up, between 8p and 16p, and then the question could I even get it?

I looked at British Gas EV tariff, and thought great, go for it, but a year down the line, and no payment for export, they can promise the earth if they don't pay it.

 

[Why Not Indeed]

As to tariff, it is in the lap of the gods, on another thread there was talk about Octopus Go, each time I looked seemed to get different information, then found there are three Octopus Go tariffs. And I failed to find out was payment for export was with Octopus Go

Octopus Energy FAQs

Which export tariff can I combine with my import tariff?

octopus.energy

There are multiple import and export tariffs which can be combined in different ways.

 

[Mister Banks]

Then (apart from the 'appreciable') you would be wrong. For the time being, until I know what's happening with prices, I've moved from the Tracker, to a Fix. The Fix was I took was expensive, but not nearly so expensive as the CAP, neither that, nor obviously the Tracker, were available to those without an SM.

I heard of a few people moving off the tracker tariff last month but regretted it and were able to switch back onto the tariff immediately, according to the T&C’s there should be a 9 month wait.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I heard of a few people moving off the tracker tariff last month but regretted it and were able to switch back onto the tariff immediately, according to the T&C’s there should be a 9 month wait.

My Tracker contract came to an end, my choices were to switch to a Fix, start the latest contract, and be stuck on it (unless I wanted to wait the 9 months), do nothing and be put on the Variable. The old Tracker I was on, was becoming quite expensive, so I decided the best/safer option, after checking, and guessing what costs might do, was to go on their 14 month Fix, as I could quickly move to the latest Tracker, if worth while.