Age Concern Energy & E.ON - What's the deal?

Tuesday, 27 May 2008

Age Concern and E.ON (Powergen) have teamed up to provide gas and electricity to people 60 plus, branded as Age Concern Energy Services. Here's what they're offering:

• A guaranteed cold weather payment of £10 for all gas customers (£20 for customers aged over 80 years)
• Gas customers aged 60 or over may receive an additional amount based upon the number of days the temperature is below freezing between December and February
• Competitive gas and electricity prices
• No standing charge - you'll only pay for what you use
• A year's free supply of carbon monoxide detectors
• A free early warning hypothermia thermometer
• 4 free low energy light bulbs
• Free UK customer service helpline, answered by a person not a machine
• Choice of ways to pay
• Simple, clear bills
• Free energy efficiency advice and offers of discounted energy saving measures

What is the cold weather payment?

If you're over 60 Age Concern Gas customers are guaranteed to receive a £10 cold weather payment. Being a gas customer you may also receive an additional payment based on the number of days the temperature is below freezing between December and February.

The rebate is paid in March and doesn't not affect the Government's Winter Fuel Payment.

Note: To receive this rebate you need to be a gas customer. So if you only sign up for electricity you won't be entitled to the payment.

If you're trying to compare Age Concern Energy Services (ACES) and StayWarm here are the main differences:

• ACES provides a guaranteed £10 payment to "gas" and dual fuel customers and £20 for customers aged 80 years and over.
• 8% discount for taking both fuels and paying by fixed monthly Direct Debit wiht ACES
• Being an ACES customer you may receive a rebate for the number of days below freezing between December and February.
• Staywarm offers a fixed tariff for 12 months. ACES doesn't.
• StayWarm must be paid by monthly Direct Debit. ACES customers can choose their method of payment.
• You can choose gas or electricity with ACES. StayWarm requires both.

According to the E.ON website you will save up to £69 a year by switching to E.ON Age Concern, which is based on "a customer taking unrestricted electricity from the host supplier and gas from British Gas, paying by quarterly cash cheque, changing to Age Concern Higher User taking electricity and gas and continuing to pay by quarterly cash cheque. The saving is averaged nationally is based on consuming annually 20,500 kWh for Gas and 3,300 kWh for electricity. Savings includes VAT and may vary according to payment method, region and consumption."

How do I compare E.ON Age Concern with other energy suppliers?

Age Concern Energy Services may be the right tariff for you. But just because it's aimed at people over 60 it doesn't mean it's your cheapest and best option.

Start by getting a quote from Age Concern Energy to see how much it will cost.

Once you have a quote we recommend using an energy comparison website such as Energy Helpline. You will need to fill in the online quote form which will take no more than a couple of minutes. If you find an energy supplier cheaper than both your current provider and Age Concern Energy Services it's worth switching.

It is recommended you compare the Age Concern energy tariff against other energy suppliers if you're considering signing up to Age Concern Energy Services, or you're conducting an annual review of your energy bill.