# Energia - Whats your experience been like ?



## MrEarl (1 Sep 2014)

Hello,

I am currently considering my options, regarding changing both gas & electricity provider.  Like others here (who have posted in recent months), I am finding Energia the cheapest when I use the price comparison websites.

However, I have not seen any comments (sorry if I have missed them) from those who have moved to Energia, regarding their experience with the company in terms of provision of service, reliability of invoicing, customer service etc.  

What's the experience been like for those of you who have moved to Energia please ?   Sorry, call me paranoid but having had one bad experience a couple of years ago with Airtricity, I'm anxious to get some references before risking another new provider aside from Board Gais or Electric Ireland.

All feedback and advice very much appreciated.

Also, many thanks to the doctor for this link, it's offering a further 2% discount: http://www.*****************.com/electricity-and-gas-cheapest-combined-prices.html


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## JohnJay (1 Sep 2014)

I signed up about 10 days ago. Not fully changed over yet, but they did write to me to confirm my dd details, have given me my account number, set up my on-line access, etc. All looks good so far. They did explain that it can take a number of weeks to get it changed over. I think my gas might already be signed over as I can see all my gas details on my on-line account, but no details on my electricity


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## hippy1975 (2 Sep 2014)

Mr. Earl it might be worth your while staying with Electric Ireland, if that is your preference, and taking their 6% discount for DD payment and online billing - this lasts a year and then you need to call them again and they'll renew it.  
If you compare this on the comparison websites you'll see there's little or no difference then between this EI discounted rate and the rates to switch to others......unless you're using a huge amount of electricity.   The reason for that is the 17% cheaper etc that the others advertise is off their unit rates, while their standing charge is higher, so the less electricity you use the less you will save and the less useful the deal is for you.


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## MrEarl (2 Sep 2014)

Hi Everyone,

Thank you all for your responses.

Having checked two price comparison websites (bonkers.ie and uswitch.ie), it would appear that there are notable savings for me if I move to Energia.  This is based on me inputting my average bill amount, looking at duel services.  We don't have significant bills, we are just a modest family home who remember to turn the lights out, have the heating on a timer etc.

In truth, I'm very close to moving given the cost saving - money doesn't grow on trees as we all appreciate.  But that said, I had a bad experience with Airtricity a few years ago and swore I'd never go back to them.  Based on that experience, I thought it would be prudent to do some research about Energia, for fear of another Airtricity experience (which I think I posted about here on this website, on previous occassions).

Obviously, I apprecaite all assistance and advice, particularly from those with first hand experience of dealing with Energia.


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## Palerider (2 Sep 2014)

I moved my gas and electricity to Energia with online statements and payment by d/d, their customer service is really very good, I had one blip when they wrote to me saying my electric bill of €265 was overdue when they did not present the d/d for payment to an account that is always in funds, a completion of a 2nd mandate sorted that with an apology, also anytime they write to you it is available to view online so in this case they could see that I had signed up for d/d payments so no needless explaining required.


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## gipimann (2 Sep 2014)

I switched a couple of months ago (gas only) - no problems to report so far. Bills arrive on time, good communications during the transfer.


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## postman pat (3 Sep 2014)

I switched a few months ago too(gas and electric)no problems at all so far..and can see a noticeable saving in both bills.
Also website is easy to navigate etc.


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## LM26 (3 Sep 2014)

Switched recently and all good so far. The online chat function is very handy for any queries.


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## Lightning (15 Sep 2014)

The promotional code ENER17 will get you 17% of electricity only, with Energia, for the first year after switching. 

Energia have a higher standing charge than Electric Ireland but when you factor in the discount a switch is worthwhile for most.


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## flowerman (23 Sep 2014)

Couldnt be happier with Energia so far.

Keep on getting EI sales reps knocking on my door asking me to switch over to them.

Do they not understand the words NO THANKS


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## garbanzo (23 Sep 2014)

Changed over to energia over the summer. Seems grand. Does what it says on the tin and there are monthly savings happening on both my gas and electricity. No surprises or shocks. I'm just putting in the same amount I used to, to ESB and Flogas, into the account and there's a bit of a small reserve building up. No reason not to go for it OP...


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## Brendan Burgess (23 Oct 2015)

I switched a couple of months ago through Bonkers and the process was very easy.

But I am beginning to regret it.

I am getting swamped with actual letters and spam emails from them.  

It's very, very annoying.  I don't mind getting notified that a new bill has issued, but I do not want an email with the heading "no more scary bills". Their marketing people might think that is very funny, but I do not. 

Brendan


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## eamo15 (23 Oct 2015)

i switched last year with no problems however after the year they gave me absolute no incentive to stay so i switched back to electric ireland.they then sent a letter sayibg they were sorry to lose me as a customer and stated if i wanted to switch back i could for the best rates at any time..doesnt make sense does it..do im sticking with electric ireland ill keep tabs to see how much more my gas and electricity cost this year


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## dereko1969 (23 Oct 2015)

Brendan Burgess said:


> I switched a couple of months ago through Bonkers and the process was very easy.
> 
> But I am beginning to regret it.
> 
> ...


I don't get spammed by them, found them fine after a slightly dodgy start in that because I was a new gas customer (having got gas only recently installed) their system didn't allow for new customers only switchers, got it sorted after a bit and got an extra discount for my troubles.


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## MrEarl (23 Oct 2015)

Brendan Burgess said:


> ....
> 
> I am getting swamped with actual letters and spam emails from them.
> 
> ...



Hello Mr. Burgess,

That is frustrating and not something I would welcome either.

Out of interest, have you contacted them to tell them you don't want furher communications of this nature and if so, how did they respond ?


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## postman pat (23 Oct 2015)

eamo15 said:


> i switched last year with no problems however after the year they gave me absolute no incentive to stay so i switched back to electric ireland.they then sent a letter sayibg they were sorry to lose me as a customer and stated if i wanted to switch back i could for the best rates at any time..doesnt make sense does it..do im sticking with electric ireland ill keep tabs to see how much more my gas and electricity cost this year



Thats exactly what happened me at the end of my contract year, i phoned them (Energia) and asked what could they do for me,the woman on the other end of the phone was a bit offhand and said "nothing"i  got the impression she was saying "off with ya"..so off i went to Electric Ireland with both my gas and electric,I find them very good up till now and also they have a very customer friendly website.
I kind of wonder if i was the boss of Energia,I would be asking some questions.



Pat


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## Brendan Burgess (24 Oct 2015)

MrEarl said:


> Hello Mr. Burgess,
> 
> That is frustrating and not something I would welcome either.
> 
> Out of interest, have you contacted them to tell them you don't want furher communications of this nature and if so, how did they respond ?



Yes, I unsubscribed to the emails.


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## naughto (4 Nov 2015)

My yr is up with eneriga do I need to contact eneriga them or just switch to another provided?


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## PWC999 (16 Dec 2016)

I have a small company and we signed up in 2014 on a one year contract. Unknown to us the contract expired and our tariff shot up about 40%. They did not inform us we were out of contract. An ESB salesman called last month and gave us a cracking rate. He called because he could 'see' we were out of contract. The Energia bills fail to give the average or highest MIC used, as a consequence we were buying 125kVA MIC when our highest was 41 kVA. We paid Energia in excess of €10,000 in punitive tariff and ESB and Social in excess of  €9000 for over stating our MIC. All could have been avoided with transparent billing. We are going to the regulator, but because it appears no wrong was committed, nothing will be done. Unjust enrichment?
As close to a scam as you can legally go?
Our office clerk would have to be very sharp to notice the tariff change amongst all the numbers.
Avoid Energia!


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## JohnJay (16 Dec 2016)

I'm sure commercial electricity is similar to residential. You need to get the best offer you can and change provider every 12 months. I'm currently Bord Gais for electricity and Flogas for gas, but will probably be with someone different once my contract is up


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## demoivre (19 Dec 2016)

PWC999 said:


> I have a small company and we signed up in 2014 on a one year contract. Unknown to us the contract expired and our tariff shot up about 40%. They did not inform us we were out of contract. An ESB salesman called last month and gave us a cracking rate. He called because he could 'see' we were out of contract. The Energia bills fail to give the average or highest MIC used, as a consequence we were buying 125kVA MIC when our highest was 41 kVA. We paid Energia in excess of €10,000 in punitive tariff and ESB and Social in excess of  €9000 for over stating our MIC. All could have been avoided with transparent billing. We are going to the regulator, but because it appears no wrong was committed, nothing will be done. Unjust enrichment?
> As close to a scam as you can legally go?
> Our office clerk would have to be very sharp to notice the tariff change amongst all the numbers.
> Avoid Energia!



My experience of Energia is very positive. Make a simple note of your contract end date and do as John Jay says above. The office clerk is who I would be taking issue with!


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## shweeney (19 Dec 2016)

I've just switched to Energia from BGE for both gas and elec.  I'd be very reluctant to consider BGE again in the future, they consistently failed to apply the correct tariff, I've gone through numerous long, frustrating phone calls with them.  It was only as I was leaving and raised a complaint that they finally corrected my account. Regardless of the discounts they're not worth the effort. I've used Airtricity and Flogas in the past and they're fine, haven't been with Energia long enough to express an opinion.


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## JoeRoberts (30 Dec 2016)

PWC999 said:


> I have a small company and we signed up in 2014 on a one year contract. Unknown to us the contract expired and our tariff shot up about 40%. They did not inform us we were out of contract. An ESB salesman called last month and gave us a cracking rate. He called because he could 'see' we were out of contract. The Energia bills fail to give the average or highest MIC used, as a consequence we were buying 125kVA MIC when our highest was 41 kVA. We paid Energia in excess of €10,000 in punitive tariff and ESB and Social in excess of  €9000 for over stating our MIC. All could have been avoided with transparent billing. We are going to the regulator, but because it appears no wrong was committed, nothing will be done. Unjust enrichment?
> As close to a scam as you can legally go?
> Our office clerk would have to be very sharp to notice the tariff change amongst all the numbers.
> Avoid Energia!



Agree that Energia could be more proactive in advising contract end dates. But other than that they are a good company to deal with.
At most you should only be out of pocket for 1 month as person approving the bill should have seen the increase on first new billing. Anything beyond that is an internal problem with your approval process. And approval procedure for your bill should also include a cross check to your meter for usage.

I don't think Energia gain from the excess charges from incorrect MIC. Thought it was ESB Networks who get it. It is totally the customer's responsibility to set it correctly.
You can request your usage by the hour/qtr hour depending on your meter by emailing ESB Networks with your site number. They send a spreadsheet. This would show it straight away.
It is good data to show electricity usage and can highlight wasted energy during non-working hours. Worth a check every couple of months.

Gas networks works a bit different for their "MIC". This is set once a year based on previous years usage. Maybe ESB networks could consider this approach but it also has drawbacks and is not an actual contract rate like MIC.


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## MrEarl (9 Feb 2017)

Hello,

Is anyone receiving ongoing nuisance calls from the following phone number: +353 0818555222 (the call comes through, is answered, no one says anything for a few seconds and then they hang up) ?

I have found a website with posts on it from people claiming that the calls might be as a result of registering with Energia and a crowd that do the free boiler insurance for them, so I am trying to confirm so I can then put a stop to it.

Thank you.


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## Shallow Hal (10 Feb 2017)

@naughto,you don't need to contact them if you wish to change once your contract is up but i'm sure they'll probably contact you when the switch form lands on their desk!!

I was in the process of changing electricity supplier from Electric Ireland to Energia as my contract was finished in December,i sent a mail to Electric Ireland asking what other discount apart from the 5.5% discount for online/DD billing would be available to me,the reply was that no other discount (other than the 5.5%)was available so i did my research and found Energia to be the next best,completed the online switching form and then a day later received a call from Electric Irl offering me a €175 credit and retention of the 5.5% discount to stay with them which i did based on our annual consumption and given that Energia's Annual Standing Charge is €12 more expensive,
The Electric Irl rep then put me through to Energia who then cancelled the switch application.
For my gas,i stayed with Flogas as they offered me a 20% discount...but that was after i rang to say i was thinking of switching to another provider.


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## Odea (20 Feb 2017)

I switched from Electric Ireland to Energia last year. I decided to have a look at my account today to see when my contract expires. There was no date on my online account. If there was I couldn't find it. This should be visible.
I contacted them via online chat and discovered that my contract had ended at the start of February. Not only that but I discovered that I had been moved to their standard tariff. An increase of 5c in the price per unit.

My advice to people making the switch is that your "year" moves along very quickly and don't expect to be notified of changes to your tariff. It's up to you to keep yourself informed and up to date.


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## Leo (20 Feb 2017)

Odea said:


> My advice to people making the switch is that your "year" moves along very quickly and don't expect to be notified of changes to your tariff. It's up to you to keep yourself informed and up to date.



Good advice and it applies to all providers.


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## MrEarl (21 Feb 2017)

I think that is good advice, but also typical of just about everything... if the provider has not specifically agreed to notify you then why would they, it's not to their benefit ?

... anyway, it's easy enough to put a note in your diary, or a reminder in the calender in your phone when you first sign up with a service provider, so you can be reminded when the contract ends 

Charlie Weston was on Clare live earlier on referencing the significant reductions the various engery companies have been enjoying in recent years and how they have not passed them on (to anywhere near the extent they should have done)... apparently the regulator is now investigating - too little too late, I'd have thought (but thats just typical of all of our regulators imho) !


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## Palerider (21 Feb 2017)

MrEarl said:


> Hello,
> 
> Is anyone receiving ongoing nuisance calls from the following phone number: +353 0818555222 (the call comes through, is answered, no one says anything for a few seconds and then they hang up) ?
> 
> ...




Yes, Abbey Insurance are calling, they offer the free boiler cover and are looking to upsell the policy to a full cover policy, I find it very annoying and told them never to call me again, they called me 5 or 6 times and when I answered nobody was there, they got me eventually and I roasted them for these unwanted call, it reflects very poorly on Energia.


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## Odea (21 Feb 2017)

When I got their call I couldn't understand one word the person was saying. Speaking very fast in a Norn accent. I actually had to terminate the call as we were getting nowhere.


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## MrEarl (21 Feb 2017)

Hello,

Thankfully these calls seem to have gone away (fingers crossed, for good !).  I received quite a few of them during the space of a couple of weeks, but never heard a voice - just a blank line when I answered and then ultimately it disconnected.  Perhaps they have some form of dialing system.

Getting back to Abbey, I did speak with them initially after I availed of the free insurance. They asked me if they could call me to quote for my car insurance etc. later in the year and I consented, gave the approximate dates etc. so that might tally (given my car insurance is just up).  However, if they wanted my business, you'd think they would want to actually speak with me to quote me, not just annoy me ?

I also emailed Energia and told them I wanted them to stop sharing my information, withdrawing any and all previous consent - I referenced these calls, but got no acknowledgement that the calls were as a result of them sharing my details. They briefly apologised for the inconvenence, but and they would not tell me who they had shared my contact details with.  A coincidene that the calls have now stopped, one can only wonder ?


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