The house we moved into in April has a pre-payment meter (logical choice for the developer who needed electricity to run the heating etc as the house was standing unoccupied for at least two years.) I don't personally believe its the most cost effective or convenient way to pay for electricity. There was 85 quids worth of credit on the meter when we moved in. My previous supplier are good and cheaper than the current supplier at the home, they suggested I phoned them around a month before the credit ran out to set up a new quarterly account and that they would then swap the pre-payment meter for a quarterly one.
I duly phoned them and was told that the easiest way to get around being charged for installing a new meter was to set up a pre-payment contract with them and that they would send me a new "key" to use in the meter. This is what's happened, now the question arises - we had to top up £20.00 worth two weeks ago and we have a tenner's worth left, can I swap the keys around now (i.e. has that credit transferred to the meter or is it key specific) or do I wait for the credit in the meter to be close to running out ?
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I wouldnt consider any form of pre-payment meter, it is the most expensive way of paying for your fuel. Get it out and get a proper contract.
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Industry regulations prevent pre-payment customers being ripped off like they used to be, so there's no longer much - if anything - in it.
What you can't do so easily is rate tart, although I'm very wary of changing and am still with nPower after ten years at Iffy Towers.
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it is commonly accepted that almost all prepayment gas and electricity meters are set at the supplier’s most expensive tariff. That means that the least well-off in society pay the most for their energy.
www.energychoices.co.uk/prepayment-meters.html
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I know it's expensive, but seeing as I got nearly a ton's worth of leccy free when I moved in I was none too bothered, I am bothered now as I'll have to start paying hence the move to a quarterly meter ASAP. What I need to know is whether the credit I had on the first stick will remain on the meter when I stick in my next stick..?
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...What I need to know is whether the credit I had on the first stick will remain on the meter when I stick in my next stick..?...
It will.
I have something similar at the caravan which takes 50-unit cards.
The meter displays the credited units.
If there's, say, 90 units on the meter and you put in another card, the meter shows 140 units.
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Thanks iffy - I need to "top-up" before we go on holiday !
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Anywhere nice?
Don't suppose Pugugly Manor will use a lot while you are away.
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I am up there next weekend, he needs to do a runner
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Sadly yes - we have a Christening near Mold on Sunday then off to Rhodes for a week. Zero we lunched at the garden centre I mentioned the other day - it was busy, the cavery opens at 11.45am !
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I'll check out your pasture for some mates of mine, you'll find it loaded with silver caravans, white transits, piles of old tarmac and 500 lurchers by the time you get back.
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11:45 is waaaaaaaaaay too early. The olds eat earlier and earlier.
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A final thought on his meter.
The ones fitted by nPower have a 'reserve tank'.
So if you have 30 units, it will let you use 40 units before it cuts off.
Off course when you top up, it will count from -10.
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There's a giant red button on this meter, I guess that's what that is for.....I'll top my new stick thing up tomorrow and see what happens.
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>> Of course when you top up, it will count from -10
It will cost you 16 units but only cancel the 10, actually...
PU - The "emergency" credit becomes available when the balance displayed on the meter falls below £2.00. You activate it by inserting your "empty" key, it then allows you to go up to £5.00 "overdrawn" on the meter. Next benefits day when you top it up, the "overdraft" is repaid plus a £3.00 fee, the remaining cash goes onto your meter balance.
In answer to the original question, the way I understand these things to work is thus:
The balance on your meter stays on your meter to be used at the set rate per unit of electricity.
You have an account held centrally on computer, which is credited when you pay cash to top up your key/card at the local shop. The shop's online terminal updates the key/card with following information:
Amount of credit on key/card
Amount to be paid towards arrears this week
Amount available for electricity consumption
Rate in pence per unit of electricity
When you insert the key/card into the meter all this info is uploaded, and the meter then cycles through the following displays: (Assume I have a balance on my meter of £2.00 and am topping up £15.00 this week, with a weekly arrears payment of £6.00)
(Before insertion) Balance £2.00
(After insertion) Credit £15.00
Amount for arrears £6.00
Amount for credit £9.00
Balance £11.00
If no arrears and no £5 "overdraft" this week then all the credit goes on the meter. The rate per unit is not usually displayed on your meter but the key/card updates the meter with it nonetheless, this is why your new electricity provider has advised you to run the balance down and then start using their key/card instead. The "big red button" is used for toggling through the various readings, settings etc.
I've got a leaflet explaining the top-up procedure in words of one syllable, I can't find a copy online to link to but it explains all of the above without referring to the existence of the central account balance (as this would be too complicated for the majority of end users).
Some unscrupulous folk take advantage of this simple principle of operation to drive around rough estates with a laptop and USB key/card reader (easily obtained by requesting one for home online topup capability, I've got one) knocking on doors and offering £50 top-ups for £25 cash. Many simple folks fall for this because they don't understand the need for their central account balance to tally with the meter in their house - a fraud easily uncovered by a visiting meter reader.
Last edited by: Dave_TDCi on Sun 12 Jun 11 at 20:46
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>> off to Rhodes for a week
I am there in a few weeks too. Weather looking good for you I think.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Sun 12 Jun 11 at 21:19
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Yep 27 degrees today.
Last edited by: Pugugly on Sun 12 Jun 11 at 21:26
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Aha - all is revealed thanks Dave - there was something in the letter I had from EDF warning me against updating my key with to a door-knocker, oh well off to town tomorrow to update my new key, no point in phoning EDF for a quarterly meter until I'm back from my hols.
ps
haven't forgotten about the retro-CAR mag - be in the post soon.
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Thanks PU.
I had a surprise last month, when my energy suppliers' computer finally caught up with my situation and refunded several months' worth of arrears payments taken weekly after the cut-off date. Topped up gas and elec with £10 each one Friday, upon inserting the key the elec meter cycled through "Balance £2, Topup £10, Amount for credit £10, New balance £168.60", whilst the gas meter's new balance was even higher. Both figures worked out as the equivalent of about 12 weeks' average consumption.
The trick now, is to keep sticking £10 a week in both of them to offset the increased consumption when the weather turns (even) colder.
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i think our resrve tank is £10 but in the winter we use 50-70 pounds a week with electric heating and the tumble drier on all all but in the summer its much cheaper like £20 a week. i dont think it works a great deal more expensively than a credit meter. npower wanted to charge me £400 for changing the meter.
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... i dont think it works a great deal more expensively than a credit meter. npower wanted to charge me £400 for changing the meter...
I'm sure you are right about that.
The key rates are fairly competitive, so you'd have to tart around a lot to make a worthwhile saving.
There might be a small benefit in switching to another supplier if they would install a credit meter without charge.
My old disc credit meter was recently changed free of charge as part of routine upgrading.
The modern digital meters weigh next to nothing and don't look very expensive, so I don't think the materials cost of changing is very high.
The guy did mine in about 30 minutes, so nor should there be a high labour cost.
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WARNING
npower tried to get me to pay off the balance of the previous customer's debt when I changed from a pre-payment to a credit meter. Record any phone calls you make to them, they might come in handy.
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...npower tried to get me to pay off the balance of the previous customer's debt ...
Good thought.
They can set the key meter to take a tiny bit extra, so the customer hardly notices he's paying more.
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All sorted, the new key credited up and inserted and it all divvied up. Next step is to arrange for a new meter !
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Pre-payment meter qustion - Zero
