Time to move to a SMART plan?

U

Ualtar

Registered User
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Hi guys,
Now that we are talking about smart meters, I want to ask people's opinions on whether it is worth switching to a smart plan. What are the advantages and disadvantages?

I don't use comparison sites because, in my opinion, they advertise the options that give them a higher commission. I calculated the costs using Excel with every supplier for a standard plan, and Bord Gáis is by far cheaper. I wonder if a smart plan would be better.

Comparative Table​

SupplierElectricity OnlyGas OnlyDual Fuel
Bord Gáis€1,295.02€1,257.30€2,552.32
Electric Ireland€1,454.46€1,427.68€2,882.14
Energia€1,356.18€1,501.32€2,773.78
SSE Airtricity€1,387.93€1,290.94€2,678.87
 
Ualtar said:
I don't use comparison sites because, in my opinion, they advertise the options that give them a higher commission.
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They might give the suppliers who offer them commission a higher profile in the results, but the comparison sites that are regulated must provide details of all suppliers. You may need to select an option to show all plans including ones not available for direct sign-up via that site though.
 
A lot will depend on your usage profile, particularly if you have storage heaters, an electric car, solar panels and / or a home storage battery
 
The comparison sights have lost value with the increase in distributed energy between solar panels and then heat pump demand and EV demand. No EV rates (low middle of night rate for example means the sites I have tried to use recently are useless
 
You really need a years data off a smart meter to see exactly what plan is best. It’s a minefield to navigate but if you stay on your current plan for a year, assess the data using energy pal it literally tells you which current plan is best for you based on your exact usage (day, night, weekend etc)
 
My energy pal is excellent, we very much tailor our usage to our plan and it gave us our plan back as the best one. It is worth noting that you might also consider a change to your usage which might mean a different plan works better for you - by switching to off peak times or free days if that suits your rhythm or lifestyle. So bear it in mind as well...you are unlikely to use more units but the time of day that you use them could change.
 
misemoi said:
My energy pal is excellent, we very much tailor our usage to our plan and it gave us our plan back as the best one.
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Very much agree with this observation, energypal is great but will only recommend a plan based on your usage history and not what would be a cheaper plan if you opted to change your usage habits

We made the switch to a Bord Gais Smart Plan late in '22 and have saved a good bit of money than if we'd stayed on the old meter
but we did change our usage habits to suit the plans with mixed feelings about how it worked out

The first year we went for the free electricity on Sunday and although it did have a positive effect in reducing our energy bills
We both felt half way through that it had a very negative effect on our Sundays as the day became a labour intensive household duties day

This year we moved to the plan with a very cheap EV rate and although there is no free electricity on this plan and a higher standing charge, I've a feeling that when the second year is up there will be very little between the two plans cost wise but while this plan suits us and our lifestyle much better it might not suit others if they can't utilise the EV rate to it's maximum benefit

But IIRC when I did the figures for the first year I believe that if we hadn't changed our usage habits and just opted for a basic smart plan
it still would have saved us a little money, not much maybe around €100 compared to the old meter standard rates (at the time)

So for me there is no disadvantage to switching on the smart meter
(other than 52 lost Sundays doing house work ) ;)
 
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Cervelo said:
but will only recommend a plan based on your usage history and not what would be a cheaper plan if you opted to change your usage habits
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That's a very good idea for an enhancement to that site. I did a similar exercise in Excel recently, pulling the results from EnergyPal and shifting some consumption around to see what the effect would be.
 
charlie007 said:
I just DuckDuckGo'd that! and it appears they are both smart plans?
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Yes, but the point being that you can still avail of the old metering style of either day/night or 24 hour rate while being on a smart plan.

To explain it further:

These are the charging structures offered by energy providers
Traditional meters and energy plans​
Smart meters and smart plans​
Day/Night planDay/Night plan
24 hour plan24 hour plan
Time of use plan (day, night and peak)
EV plans
Weekend plans

Smart plans offer far more varied ways of being charged for your electricity usage - you really have to find the one that suits your usage best. However, smart plans still offer the same charging structures as the old school ways of doing it. It's just that they are more commonly known for their 'Time of use' plans, but you can still avail of a 'day/night' or '24 hour plan' smart plan.

So what @Fortune meant is that they switched from one of the newer 'Time of use plans' back to an old style '24 hour plan', but it's still within the smart meter/plan.

I'll also paste this extract from the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU);

"Suppliers have said that once a customer goes on a smart tariff, they cannot return to a standard tariff, either within the contract term or afterwards?
Once the “meter configuration code” (MCC) is changed to either Time of Use Tariff (MCC12) or a Standard Smart Tariff (MCC16), it cannot reverted back to the original flat rate/24-hour tariff (MCC01).

However, this does not prevent the customer from moving back to a flat-rate tariff or stop energy suppliers from offering customers on Time of Use Tariff or a Standard Smart Tariff a flat rate tariff. A number of suppliers in the market offer the same flat rate tariff to customers, whether they are on a flat rate/24-hour tariff, Time of Use Tariff or a Standard Smart Tariff."

So the not being able to switch back is more or less a network configuration thing - it won't affect your billing because you can still get an old style plan.
 
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gort_gráinneog said:
So the not being able to switch back is more or less a network configuration thing - it won't affect your billing because you can still get an old style plan.
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Yeah, I think some of the issue at the start was the limited smart plan offerings, I don't believe there were flat 24 hour rates available back then. The regulator has since increased the number of smart plans the providers can offer so that has given them a little more flexibility.
 
Yes! I have used higher electricity charges but also high welcome bonuses in the past.

These plans were ideal for low use properties and were generally not available on smart plans.

I have however just noted this on the Airtricity site...





Smart Everyday
Simple rate with smart meter benefits. Plus €200 Welcome credit and 10% off our unit rates*.
Estimated annual bill: €1,499.93*
*Terms & conditions
Smart meters & rates explained

Available offers​

Fixed rate
Top discount
Welcome credit
€200 Welcome credit and 10% off our unit rates*.
 
What I don't like about the smart and TOU (time of use) plans is that unlike my day/night plan, their prices aren't well strung out between each of them. Day/Night is usually a simple night rate is half the price of the day rate. Of course the 'Day' rate in the Nightsavers is usually 33% more than the 'Day' rate of 24hours so there's not often any advantage. Don't start me on the Standing Charge :mad:. I predict it will end up like the UK where you'll need an expert to explain the various tariffs.
 
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