E.ON scraps standard variable tariff for customers with smart meters
E.On is scrapping its standard variable tariff and putting customers on a fixed one-year deal once their existing tariff expires. However, it's only available to homes with smart meters.
E.ON is the first energy firm to offer cheaper deals to customers – as long as they have a smart meter installed.
Instead of being moved onto the firm’s standard variable tariff, customers with a smart meter will be put on a one-year fixed deal which it promises will be cheaper.
The energy provider has 4.6 million customers and only 750,000 of those people have smart meters in their homes, a dismal 16%.
Criticism
E.ON's move has been criticised as a crafty tactic to get more customers using the smart meters, but with this new deal in place, it might just work.
Standard variable tariffs are a horrendous rip-off and yet so many households are on them. The Government has even tried to step in and put a cap on them to keep customer bills under control.
One of the main issues with smart meters is how unpopular they are with customers. Reports of meters going ‘dumb’ and concerns over privacy have put a serious dent in the Government’s £11 billion roll-out plan.
Some of the Big Six energy firms have even admitted that a number of households just aren’t accepting them.
They're not alone – a good chunk of loveMONEY readers think smart meters should be done away with altogether.
You can cast your vote by heading over to Smart meters: Conservative party pledges to make smart meters voluntary
Replacing one bad deal with another?
The new deal could also come under fire from industry campaigners and organisations, depending on how E.ON handles it.
Citizens Advice chief executive, Gillian Guy, said:
“It’s a positive sign that E.ON has recognised that standard variable tariffs have had their day. However, this must not become a situation of one bad deal replacing another.
“E.ON needs to be absolutely transparent about the costs of any rolling fixed deal, and also be clear with customers about what happens when the fixed period ends.”
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