Unfortunately my acc with Iberdrola is closed so no access to any data. Scone&Jam suggests GDPR which I suppose will contain all payments. But it was so annoying that we were just landed with Electric Ireland without a choice and then told cannot switch until Sept. Chat can't help and so I dialled their helpline but that is experiencing such a high volume of calls you could be there for an hour waiting, so very hard to switch. At the moment they are charging on the standard rate. Frustrating. As I write this am on hold 20+mins to ESB Networks looking for a smart meter.....eventually told that I will be informed when in the areaIt's really a question of how long is a piece of string. The various providers target different price points. The likes of bonkers make it easy over you know your usage.
Can you use previous years bills to gauge your usage or alternatively your online banking to see how much it cost (there is an option to put in spend as an alternative to actual usage)?
Frustrating. As I write this am on hold 20+mins to ESB Networks looking for a smart meter.....eventually told that I will be informed when in the area![]()
I've read a lot here about smart meter plans being a lot more expensive, but comparing some of the numbers on Bonkers there is little or no difference for average users, and potentially decent savings for users who can shift usage to certain narrow off-peak windows.Why in God's name are you looking for a smart meter? You must have money to burn!
Assuming rural user on national average usage, the Bonkers calculator shows the EI Home Electric SST smart meter plan as costing €135 or 7% less then the best non-smart plan.
I simply went through the Bonkers cost comparison options for non-smart meter and with a smart meter. The smart plan worked out cheaper for the same usage.I wanted to compare that with my current (dumb day/night meter) plan, but the only place on the EI website where I can find that plan is for dual-fuel customers. Am I missing something?
I simply went through the Bonkers cost comparison options for non-smart meter and with a smart meter. The smart plan worked out cheaper for the same usage.
The tool assumed usage breakdown as 11% peak, 55% day rate and 34% of night rate. If you moved more usage to the night rate (EV users...) you'd save even more on the smart plans.
"The CRU admitted that the deals on offer to date have not been persuasive. There is also public fear they could end up paying extra-high charges for peak-time use that would not be compensated by low prices off-peak."
QED? While they might not be persuasive, there is no evidence to suggest they are a lot more expensive as you were suggesting.QED.
Although, it's depressing to see the CRU - as usual - trying to pass the buck: "it's got nothing to do with us boss! We don't get paid those big fat salaries for proactively looking after consumers' interests!"
QED? While they might not be persuasive, there is no evidence to suggest they are a lot more expensive as you were suggesting.
The CRU are bound by the terms of the relevant legislation, they get paid whatever salaries they get paid to do their jobs within the terms of that legislation.
So why the moan that they're not acting outside of their remit?As a former bureaucrat I am well aware of the legal position, thanks. And as a consumer, I am aware of the reality.
But average users will save money on the smart plans, and more if they can offset usage more.QED, there's nothing in the new so-called "smart meters" to attract consumers to "smart tariffs". €1,2bn wasted which would have better spent as consumer subsidies on fuel costs.
Maybe others have different energy profiles, we do have a large enough continuous base load, so for us we'd pay a fair bit more on most smart meter plans, and substantially more on others unless we changed quite a bit of behaviour.But average users will save money on the smart plans, and more if they can offset usage more.
Suppliers haven't made smart plans significantly cheaper for people still consuming most of their electricity during the day, but anyone who expected them to do so really didn't understand the goal.
Perhaps, you may well be different enough from the average model of 11% peak, 55% day rate and 34% night rate that the comparison sites use to calculate the costs of various plans. If your use is more concentrated during the day and in particular the shorter peak period, a smart plan will cost you more.Maybe others have different energy profiles, we do have a large enough continuous base load, so for us we'd pay a fair bit more on most smart meter plans, and substantially more on others unless we changed quite a bit of behaviour.