I'm happy to report that we're making progress, though not in a straightforward way.
We got a bill from EA a few days ago for $78.82. We got another a day later for $34.86.
I won't bother you with the detail, but some of the statistics made no sense. The FIT
meter readings were spot on, which was a relief, and the kwh import figures were fairly accurate, but some of the figures used to arrive at the import reading made no sense at all, to me.
Anyway, I reckoned that we owed about $121 for the total period covered by those two bills and EA makes it about $113. Near enough for me. They're both due on Jan 8 and I intend to pay them separately. I could add them up and pay it as one bill, but I just don't want to risk of confusing their billing dep't any further 
We start with a clean sheet and our next quarterly bill should be simple. Hope you all
had a happy Christmas.
Oh, Hamish, I've been thinking of switching to Red Energy, feryl beryl seems happy with them, but you're clearly not happy, so I think I'll wait a while.
VIC Solar power system - is it beneficial?
(369 posts) (34 voices)-
Jeffrey Jones
MemberPosted Wednesday 26 Dec 2012 @ 1:20:59 am from IP # -
vikashshinge
MemberSolar energy use has been on rise from a decades now.. New inventions are taking place and i would like to bring some updates on it. I have a collection of information on EPC world Power and Energy News and i would to share with all..
Posted Wednesday 26 Dec 2012 @ 6:11:13 am from IP # -
hamish05
MemberJeffrey Jones said:
Oh, Hamish, I've been thinking of switching to Red Energy, feryl beryl seems happy with them, but you're clearly not happy, so I think I'll wait a while.
Glad you have seemingly reached a settlement that you are happy with JJ
In regard to Red, I am amazed that this "Pay on Time" issue has developed to the point that they (Red) could make themselves look so absolutely amateurish and so foolish.
Their ability to promote a scheme (POT) then stuff it up so successfully, then have to go back to the market and correct their mistakes, speaks volumes about the incompetence of the company's management!
I can just imagine the ducking and diving that would have taken place in the offices of Red after this mistake was pointed out. For about a week they denied any error.
As a footnote, my spreadsheet for electricity pricing still has Red as the lowest priced biller for my circumstances, which for the last 12 months was....
1158kWh Peak, 1938kWh O/Peak, 2683 (PFIT)Export, (0/P includes 790kWh SHW boost)
Year 2011...$969 Credit. Year 2012... $1004 Credit.
Happy with that result, particularly considering the price rises that occurred during the year. It's vindication that we have as a household, improved our electrical efficiency again this year.
Posted Wednesday 26 Dec 2012 @ 6:41:17 am from IP # -
Jeffrey Jones
MemberHappy New Year to you all.
Having finally got our retailer on the same page as us 8 months after our PV installation in May, FGS, we've just had a gas bill. It would have been $74.82, but no, it seems that we were $390.33 in credit! The bill reads 'No money owed'. Weve done our best to be honest with them and even though they kept telling us we owed nothing for electricity I finally persuaded them that we did. I paid the $113 owed last Tuesday.
I give up. It'll be interesting to see our next electricity bill. They'll work it out eventually, no doubt, but I'm tired of making phone calls and I'm going to leave them to it. I wonder what would happen if I switched retailers before they pick up the error?Posted Friday 11 Jan 2013 @ 12:08:59 am from IP # -
hamish05
MemberJJ It would seem that the incompetence of the Electricity Retailers is widespread and astonishing.
Red Energy's harebrained scheme to increase their tariff charges to facilitate the introduction of a POT discount, and then incompetently sell the concept as a “we are giving our customers what they wanted” is by any measure unethical, badly conceived and lacking credibility.
By any analysis a customer who is in credit or pays on time receives zero benefit. For that matter neither does Red. The unfortunate customer who for what-ever reason pays late, is then penalized by having their tariff and service charges increased a whopping 10%.
I suspect that this additional (10%) impost for many of those people will only worsen their financial situation with Red Energy profiteering from the misfortune of those customers. If there is an upside to that, it escapes my logic.
A more useful marketing exercise may have left their rates the same, which would then by comparison be possibly the “best in town” and introduce a small discount for payment by direct debit, for that collection method is payment utopia for business. That would then be a win-win all around.
Posted Friday 11 Jan 2013 @ 10:51:10 am from IP # -
Jeffrey Jones
MemberI suppose, Hamish, that those Red customers who actually pay a bill need to be vigilant and make sure they POT. Unhappy customers can switch to a different retailer, but which one? I doubt that there is one that ticks all the boxes. Certainly, mine doesn't.
Shortly after I posted yesterday, I got two 'new' electricity bills from EA. One covers the period May 18 to August 14 and the other August 15 to November 11.
We've already reached agreement on these and the amount owing has been paid, as I mentioned here previously.
These bills have a different set of figures but the bottom line on one is $119.80 in credit and $80.92 in credit on the other. I suppose I should be grateful that they're telling us they owe us money and we're not being asked to pay money we don't owe.
But here's the strange thing. We're on Anytime Rate but these new figures break down the usage from July 12, the day our Solar was connected, into Peak and Off Peak tariffs - 29.1c and 14.89c. I've no idea how this is going to end, but it'll be interesting!Posted Saturday 12 Jan 2013 @ 12:34:21 am from IP # -
ferylberyl
MemberJ.J. - Another year. Same old problems. They all seem to be as bad as each other. I still have no complaints with Red though.
Hamish - Perhaps I shouldn't speak too soon as my meter read is due later this week, but I don't recall getting any info regarding any price rises since my last account. i did get a letter regarding the pay on time discount that clearly stated (in the fine print) that it wouldn't apply if you were in credit. I am under a different provider to you (Powercor Zone 2) so this may make a difference.
Despite the POT issue it is worth remembering that at least Red send accounts on time and without error (so far for me at least. Fingers crossed!)I'd rather pay a little more if need be and not have to relive the fiasco I went through with Origin, or that J.J. is going through with EA.Posted Monday 21 Jan 2013 @ 1:51:15 am from IP # -
ferylberyl
MemberHey all! I just got the latest account today. The prices did indeed rise in November by around the 10% mark and I got credited with the pay on time discount. On the plus side, the solar feed in also got increased. This is the latest (ex GST):
Peak: 30.3
Off peak: 14.3
PFIT: 70.4
Daily fee: 80.0I haven't checked out how this compares to other retailer costs at the moment, but how often are the figures shown on their web sites actually correct anyway?
The meter was read on 24/1 and I got the account today. That it is a big improvement on the service, or lack there of, that I used to get from Origin. And the figures are all correct! I'm still a happy Red customer.Posted Thursday 31 Jan 2013 @ 11:39:04 pm from IP # -
hamish05
MemberIt is now 2 years since I installed Solar PV. Given my array is not ideally directional, facing 10 deg north of west, in Melb 3032, it has performed better than the original system prediction supplied by my designer/retailer, for both years.
3943.4kWh. Generated. (Last year, 3866.7kWh)
2778.8kWh. Exported or 70.5%. (Last year, 2612.5kWh or 67.6%)
Total household consumption, 11.5kWh/day (includes Electric boost SHW) 12.3kWh prev.
I am very pleased with all aspects of my generation and consumption. Although I still experience a kind of perverse sensation when my Red Energy account arrives and it is in credit !!!
Posted Monday 11 Feb 2013 @ 9:41:19 pm from IP #