Here’s my Octopus Energy bill.

I just thought I would share my Octopus Energy bill for July / August 2022. It covers a 31-day period and includes charging my Electric Vehicle at home.

How much energy did I use in 31 days?

I used 758.2 kWh of energy. This included charging my electric vehicle at home. I get around 70% of my EV charging done at home. The rest of my EV charging is done at either a Tesla Super Charger or at Tesco where I grab a free charge whilst doing my shopping thanks to their PodPoint EV chargers.

How much did I spend on electricity in 31 days?

I spend £148.72 which is quite high for the summer BUT I had family staying for most of the 31-day period. So at home, I had 3 adults and 4 kids.  They all went swimming in the sea and constantly needed to use the washing machine so it was on the go most of the time. Plus we did lots of cooking at home.

I reduced how much I paid for my electricity by shifting energy to off-peak times.

Now with 4 kids and 3 adults in the house most of the day it was a hard month. I didn’t want to rant about not using the washing machine and if we had tried to fit in all the loads of washing at night it would have been impossible. Unless of course, we stayed up to load and unload, which I didn’t really want to do. 😃

@sarah_go_green My @octopusenergy energy bill has landed. I use a smart off-peak tariff to help reduce my bill. #octopusenergy #offpeak #smarttariffs #energybills ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

Even though the house was busy I still managed to shift around 52% of my energy use to my Octopus Energy off-peak time slot. This drastically reduced my energy bill!

How? Well, my daytime rate is 29.30p per kWh and I used 361.7 kWh at this rate BUT I used 396.4 kWh off-peak at 7.5p per kWh. This brought the average I paid per kWh down to 17.71p per kWh!

Of course, my tariff is designed for EV owners. If you have an EV it is great as the whole house benefits from the off-peak rate.  You can still do this with an Economy 7 tariff. The rates are different but the effect is the same. Shifting some of your energy to the off-peak time slot by bringing down the average you pay per kWh.

It’s worth looking into and by using energy off-peak it is also better for the planet!

Should you get a smart meter?

This is the exact conversation I had with my mother this week. She is retired and has a traditional gas and electric meter.

Her meters work well and she hasn’t had any issues with them but asked me if she should consider changing. She couldn’t see why she would need one. Why put yourself through the hassle?

I am sure lots of people have the same question. I was very sceptical before I switched BUT personally, I think they are worth considering if you want to save money.

How can you save money with a smart meter?

There are so many ways you can save money if you are an Octopus Energy customer and you have a smart meter. Octopus is all about tech and trying to change how both customers and suppliers think about energy use. They have designed software, called Kraken and systems that allow them to offer cheaper rates of energy when there is less demand on the national grid. Sometimes you can even get free energy!

Octopus Energy runs lots of pilot projects and smart tariffs. Their aim is to prove to the government that people will change when and how they use energy if they can get it cheaper. They use the example of an airline that has lots of empty seats. In order to fill those seats, they offer a cheaper rate. Octopus wants to change the energy market so that it can do this with energy.

@sarah_go_green Replying to @hucmc #smartmeters should you get one. Will they save you money on your #energybill #costoflivingcrisis #energypricerise #octopusenergy ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

You can already get an Octopus smart tariff that allows you to shift energy off-peak so you can get it cheaper and they constantly pushing the boundaries. They use this data to try and show the government that energy market reforms are needed.

Review of Electricity Market Arrangements – REMA.

In October 2022 the government are coming back with findings from a review called Review of Electricity Markert Arrangements. This is because companies like Octopus have been demanding change. The review is looking into the viability of scaling up Octopus work on time-of-use tariffs as this may be an answer in part to the energy crisis and spiralling energy bills.

To take advantage of any offers I suspect that you will need a smart meter. So why not get one installed now so that you are ready? If you are already an Octopus customer you could even consider a smart tariff now.

How long will you wait to get an Octopus smart meter installed?

Both my brother and mother have requested a smart meter within the last month or so and they had an appointment within 3-4 weeks. They live in Cardiff which I think helps as they are quite central. I waited quite sometime a few years back but I live in a semi-rural location.

If nothing else getting a smart meter will help you keep an eye on how much energy you use. In today’s energy crisis that’s not a bad thing.

Why does renewable energy cost so much?

At the moment lots of people are starting to realise that a renewable energy tariff isn’t cheaper than any other form of energy.

You would assume that energy created by free resources such as the sun and wind would be cheaper but unfortunately, there is just one price for the cost of electricity.

Greg Jackson explains why renewable energy isn’t cheaper.

Yesterday on Twitter, Greg Jackson, the CEO of Octopus Energy posted a video explaining why the cost of renewable energy is not cheaper than other forms of energy. We agreed that it is “bonkers”. It isn’t something he has kept quiet on as he has been campaigning for quite some time for energy market reform. It is the only way to drive prices down and help make them become more resilient. We need energy independence in the UK and it is possible!!

@sarah_go_green Greg Jackson explain why renewable energy cost so much. #octopusenergy #energybills #energyprices #energypricecap #energypriceincrease #gregjackson ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

Octopus Energy is campaigning for change.

Octopus has been banging on the door of the government demanding action. They have been running pilot projects to prove that energy market reform is possible. They have shown that their customers will also engage with the process in order to get cheaper energy.

All we can do is hope and put pressure on the government to take action to make the changes needed so that companies like Octopus can help to bring down electricity prices.

Well done Octopus on keeping your customers informed.

Martin Lewis has updated his advice on the October 2022 Price Cap.

For months I have been telling everyone and anyone to take a fixed deal. The answer I usually get is that Martin Lewis said to do nothing.

I really love Martin Lewis and have followed his advice on many occasions but energy tariffs are so specific you have to really consider your own circumstances. Doing nothing may work if you are trying to stay on the cheapest deal at that moment in time BUT if you can see energy prices are continuing to rise, in my mind, it gives reassurance to fix a deal. It has always been my preference.

Martin Lewis, however, does not have a crystal ball and no one could have envisaged that prices would have risen this dramatically!! I have kept warning people to take a fixed if they can and it’s right for them BUT I never imagined we would see gas or electricity reach this height and even considering a price cap where gas could be 15p per kWh is simply mind-blowing.

Martin Lewis’s advice has now changed.

On the 9th of August Martin Lewis’ website added an article which suggested that you could now consider a fixed deal if you can get one that’s 95% or less above the current energy price cap. If you really want that reassurance and you can stretch a little further, he said, even a 100% increase on the current energy price cap figures would be worth considering.

This is quite a jump from DO NOTHING and is a warning that things are about to get a whole lot worse!!!

So how much is Martin Lewis suggesting we fix an energy deal at?

At the moment the energy price cap for electricity is around 28p per kWh and 7.5p per kWh for gas. So if you can get a fixed deal for around 56p per kWh for electricity and 15p per kWh gas then it is worth taking as you’ll get a rate that won’t go up any further for 12 months.

@sarah_go_green Martin Lewis advice fix or not fix energy deal. #costoflivingcrisis #energypricecap #energybills #priceincrease #energypriceincrease #octopusenergy ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

The issue is that these fixed deals are slim on the ground! I can’t quite believe a year ago you could fix your gas for 3p per kWh and electricity for 16p per kWh. Now the new fixed rates are simply unaffordable! It’s like singing up to a meal deal package when you can’t afford to buy more than one meal a month. It is simply crazy BUT it is where we are at.

Can you switch deals if energy prices become cheaper?

Whatever you decide to do remember with Octopus you can switch tariffs at any time and there is no penalty. So if prices drop you can simply take a new deal or go onto the Octopus flexible tariff.

Octopus Energy is calling for the government to consider greater assistance.

Octopus Energy is constantly trying to make the energy market better for customers. Today, Greg Jackson, the CEO of Octopus Energy was on BBC Radio 4, Best of Today, setting out how he thinks the government should step in and take action to help ease the energy crisis;

@sarah_go_green Greg Jackson #energycrisis #costoflivingcrisis #octopusenergy #energybills #energypriceincrease #energypricecap #octopus #electricitybill ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

Greg Jackson listed 5 things the government should do;

1. 1. Provide more significant support for customers.
   2. An energy efficiency program eg Advise customers on reducing their energy use by reducing the flow on their gas boiler.
   3. In the medium term – Provide an insulation program.
   4. Energy Reform – Decouple the price of electricity from gas.
   5. Investment in more renewable energy. The National Grid needs to be reformed to make this happen quicker.

Greg Jackson has been talking to the government about decoupling the price of electricity from gas for at least the last year.

Octopus Energy is always fighting for change but they can’t do this alone! Well done Octopus!

Energy Price Increased Winter 2022.

So Martin Lewis has been on his sunlounger for the last week but I spotted that he has leapt into action today as the Cornwall Insight has realised its latest figures.

It isn’t good news when you see Martin leaping about as it means something isn’t going as planned and it’s not! The Cornwall Insight has today released figures which are way beyond their previous predictions.

The Cornwall Insight had previously predicted around a 78% price cap increase in October 2022 plus an additional increase of around 4% in January 2023. They now predict an 81% price increase in October 2022 and an additional price increase of a whopping 19% in January 2023. So that a total of 100% energy price cap increase in the winter of 2022.

We need government action on energy prices.

The government isn’t as fast to get off the sun lounger as Martin. They have remained silent which I find staggering! A tax cut won’t fix this they need to take action NOW.

I am no expert but Octopus Energy has been calling for them to uncouple the price of electricity from gas. With electricity prices continuing to rise well into the winter they need to take action and that action has to be swift!

@sarah_go_green Martin Lewis tweet today #costofliving #costoflivingcrisis #energypriceincrease #energybills #energybillincrease #octoberpicecap #cornwallinsight ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

I rarely make political statements but our government is lost in action! They need to make changes now and they need to offer support even if it’s just with advice NOW!!  They can’t remain silent when millions of people will struggle to even consider turning on the oven to cook a hot meal

Here’s my guess on how much we could pay per kWh on the energy price cap.

I think would see electricity increase from 28p a kWh to anywhere around 44p per kWh in October 2022. Then staggering it will get closer to 50p per kWh in January 2023.

Gas is currently 7p ish per kWh on the energy price cap and I guess that will be around 14p per kWh in October 2022 and 16p per kWh in January 2023.

Now, these are guesses but less than a year ago they would have sounded like the rantings of a mad woman!!

There’s no getting away from the fact that energy prices have skyrocketed. Even if you are the savviest homeowner there’s just no escaping the price hikes of 2022.

There are still ways, however, to save money on your energy bill. You could just switch off and use nothing. I know for many this seems like the only option. The standing charge has increased and even without using any energy your energy bill may already to starting to mount up BUT with an Octopus smart tariff you can try and hustle a cheaper price per kWh.

Will an Octopus smart tariff help to reduce my energy bill?

Simply switching to an Octopus smart tariff won’t necessarily save you money. At the moment the daytime rate on all Octopus smart tariffs is above the price you would pay on the energy price cap. So why would anyone opt to pay more?

@sarah_go_green If you have an off-peak smart tariff with Octopus Energy you can charge your EV cheaply BUT you can also use energy in the rest of the home at the same rate of 7.5p a kWh. So delay functions and smart timers are great. #EV #EVcharging #moneysavingtips #energytariff #octopus🐙 #savemoneytips #utilitybills #electric #costoflivingcrisis @Octopus Energy ♬ original sound – sarah_go_green

Well, I am on a smart tariff designed for Electric Vehicle drivers. My daytime rate, on the Intelligent Octopus tariff, is above the energy price cap BUT off-peak between 11.30 pm and 5.30 am I can charge my EV for just 7.5p a kWh. I can also shift a lot of my hungrier appliances to come on at night during my off-peak period. Now the hustle here is that by combining the two price periods I can bring my average price down quite considerably. So my overall rate per kWh per day is well below the price cap.

Octopus Smart tariffs if you don’t own an EV.

If you don’t own an EV not all is lost as Octopus Agile is a time-of-use tariff that is designed specifically for this hustle. The peak rate has increased in the last two weeks from 35p per kWh to 55p per kWh which might at first glance rule it out of the equation. However, you only pay the peak rate price of 55p per kWh if you knowingly use energy at a specific time. Now it is more of a gamble with Octopus Agile as you bet on the fact that prices will drop at some point during the day. You get notified the day before and can plan your energy use based on hourly pricing. Once again what you have to focus on is your average energy price. If you can use more energy when the price drops your average will come down.

The Octopus Agile is fixed for 12 months at a cap of 55p per kWh.

The energy price cap rises in October 2022.

For quite some time the advice has been to do nothing. To just stay on the price cap as it is the cheapest deal. The issue now is that prices are increasing and the energy price cap is going to be amended every 3 months. This means that the stability of knowing your energy rates for the next 6 months will change. They could either keep bounding upwards or they could drop. Now reviewing them every 3 months does mean that if prices drop this will be passed on quicker to consumers but it also works the other way when prices rise.

We all need to change how we use energy.

If anything good is to come out of this energy crisis I hope it’s that we have all stopped to consider how we can use less energy. Millions of people will be doing this in the coming months from pure need rather than desire. It is a miserable state of affairs. It highlights why we need energy security in the UK. We need to both produce and manage our energy better so we are less on other countries for our gas supply.