Submitted by juskelly76 t3_10bora6 in newhampshire
Hello Neighbors, I am hoping someone can help me understand the benefits and trade offs of switching from Eversource (0.225 kWh) to Direct Energy (0.169 kWh) for a three year plan. Thank you in advance for any advice on this.
The New Hampshire PUC has a website dedicated to comparing prices.
https://www.energy.nh.gov/engyapps/ceps/ResidentialCompare.aspx?choice=Eversource
Sounds great, too great. Read. The. Fine. Print. Know when the contract ends and pay attention. These companies LOVE to jack prices up and hope you won't notice.
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Ultimately, you get to pay less for the exact same 60Hz performance you’ve been enjoying. Nothing changes but your cost.
But also, your electricity producers are incentivized to produce power less expensively while also creating more overall profit through a free market system.
The cons: Only the people willing to shop around get to pay a lower rate.
How are the other charges like delivery charge and misc fees with Direct Energy? Also, I see multiple options, some a bit less expensive than others, all offered by direct energy. Are all of them able to be cancelled with no penalty? Thanks!
Delivery etc. are still provided by Eversource at their standard rate.
I think Direct Energy puts you directly into one of the contracts they bought, so if they buy from a supplier for XX years at a certain price then they sign up as many customers as the numbers allow for that price and term. They’ll find you a new contract when that one ends if you haven’t switched yourself already. Any leftovers they sell to Eversource.
Still no penalties for switching mostly I think because no one has been switching so Eversource still has near 90% of the customers by default. If the freedom ever starts costing them money then maybe there will be fees.
Thank you. Just signed up, my elec bill, like everyone's, has been going through the roof.
I actually used Direct Energy for a while, and right now am on their competitor Xoom energy.
When you sign up, you're locked into a rate for 1,2,3 years. This only affects the supply rate, so if eversource raises T+D charges, you'll still be hit with those as they're listed separately on the bill and charged by Eversource, not Direct Energy. If Eversource lowers the supply rates and you want to switch back to them, you'll sometimes have to pay an early termination fee. They're typically not crazy, I think the plan from Xoom I'm on right now is like $50, but something to keep in mind if you're signing up for a longer term. However, when Eversource raises the supply rates, you'll still be locked into your lower rate.
Another thing to note is if you plan on getting solar panels installed, or an electric hot water heater installed (one that is billed separately), you might have issues with one of these plans depending on how the terms are written, so read carefully or give them a call before signing up for anything.
TLDR; it's great so long as you read the terms and conditions and know what you're signing up for.
Locked in 10 cents with direct energy last year for 3 years. No complaints.
how much cheaper is that?
Eversource supply rate is currently 22.566 cents and will likely go higher in February. We used 922kWh last month (we have electric heat and electric water heater) which cost $93.95 in supply. On Eversource that would be $208.05, and that doesn’t include the delivery charges.
Totally insane Eversource wants to raise it even more while prices are trending down. This is why I’m leaving this state. Done being milked by this kind of shit.
thank you!!
RE: End of contract price hikes. I am not here to argue, but it appears my experience with Direct Energy is different than that of some posters. I have been with them for at least 10 years and have never experienced an end of contract price hike. Each time my contract expires, they renew it at the existing rate. I am presently paying 0.07kWh.
It is possible that the way they are allowed to bill is different from state to state, but, again, in NH, never had a price hike.
Also, their "locked in" rates are locked in at their end. If you are in a 3 year contract and choose to leave for a better price, there is no hassle.
I’m waiting for direct energy to take over my electric bill just paid eversource 700 bucks can’t wait to be done with them next step is getting some solar going
How much cash are you typically saving? A few bucks or something more substantial?
If I swap (based on this thread I will) my 978 December electric bill would have been 812. Seems like the key is staying on top of your contract end date so you don’t get the surprise jacked up Comcast bill.
Thank you, wow that's one helluva electric bill. I thought I was suffering at 425.
I have a 3 bedroom apartment and my bill was about 430 bucks for December!
I’m saving about 70 dollars a month locked in with direct energy at 13 cents for three years.
Thew *biggest* issue is they can say "whoops" and end the contract just like you can without a fee. I don't understand this. I mean, back when deregulation first happened, I went with Resident Power..and oops, they found out their rates were too low for the NH market, so they left and just became an aggregator. I got to go back to the PSNH rate. So far, I have been fine with Direct Energy. I'm on a great rate for now.
Re: contract, they willl email you the new terms around the contract end. Be sure you review that and make sure it is to your benefit, and if it isn't, switch.
Where do you select a new supplier?
Logical-Bus401 t1_j4b9qz0 wrote
Direct Energy has a fixed rate plan only available to new customers right now so they won’t raise your rate for for the 2 or 3 years, so the price per kWh is the same each month and won’t increase OR decrease over the term of the contract. A variable price offer which eversource has unless you locked in your rate in the fall, will vary in price per kWh from month to month based on the price of electricity. Direct Energy will notify Eversource for you if you switch. Right now it’s smart to switch to direct energy because it will save you money. However, the downside is if the price of electricity goes back down in the next 2-3 years you won’t be able to benefit from that. But keep in mind that there is no cancellation fee with Direct Energy.