Octopus Energy takes over Avro Energy : what should customers do?

What should current Avro Energy customers do now?

The situation is understandably confusing at the moment for the UK gas market. Don't fret, here is everything you need to know about what to do or not to do as an Avro Energy customer.

What happened to Avro Energy?

Like other, smaller British energy suppliers, Avro Energy is no longer able to put its offers on the market, and has officially gone bust. This is due to the recent increase in wholesale gas prices of September 2021, which in turn have made it impossible for a number of gas suppliers to keep up in the current economy.

Avro Energy ceased its activity on the 22nd of September 2021, but this shift had already begun in January of the same year. Ofgem has recently assigned a specific supplier to take over the contracts of all 580,000 Avro Energy customers : Octopus Energy.

Will my energy supply be temporarily interrupted?

No worries here, you'll still be supplied with the energy you need to power your household and its appliances. You probably won't even notice any kind of change - the energy will arrive no matter what, the only difference being its supplier.

Should I still be paying Avro Energy?

Depending on the state of your debt or credit owed to or expected from Avro Energy, there may still be payment issues to be dealt with. Therefore, Ofgem recommends you wait until Octopus Energy contacts you before cancelling your direct debit payment system.

Not to worry if you've cancelled it already : Octopus Energy will help you create a new direct debit account.

Should I take a new meter reading?

Absolutely. While this isn't an official obligation, we highly recommend you take a reading on your energy meter. This will help your transition to Octopus Energy go more smoothly.

For smart meters, the same idea applies: take a reading and don't worry about compatibility concerning your newly appointed supplier. If they have to, your new supplier will simply treat your smart meter as a traditional one when they come over to take their own readings. Remember, you can always switch suppliers later on.

I am still in credit or in debt to Avro Energy - what do I do?

Octopus Energy has pledged to honour any credit you had with Avro Energy as part of their taking over their customers. As for when they will be reimbursing this credit, Octopus Energy or its administrators will let you know in time) wait for them to contact you before doing that yourself.

As for debt owed to Avro Energy, Octopus Energy has not yet revealed the exact measures it will be taken to regulate this. We once again ask you to hold on before attempting to resolve this issue yourself - wait until you are contacted.

Will my bills go up with my new supplier?

Initially, you will be put on a "deemed" contract, automatically assigned to you by Octopus Energy, and this contract may well cost you more than your old Avro Energy bills. However, once Octopus Energy has contacted you, you will be able to shop for other energy plans that fit your budget a little better.

What rate will I pay under my new contract?

You'll start out under your new supplier's deemed contract. The rates of this contract will be communicated to you by Octopus Energy themselves.

However, remember that you are still free to switch contracts with this new supplier, and can aim to find its lowest rates at that point in time. You can also decide to go for another supplier, although the current context makes it difficult to evaluate how safe different suppliers may be.

When will Octopus Energy contact me?

Now that Octopus Energy has been chosen as your replacement supplier, they will contact you as quickly as they can - but remember, there are many customers to be taken care of, so you may have to be patient for a while.

How will Octopus Energy contact me, and what if I'm moving home?

Your new supplier, or their administrator, will contact you using your current address. This means that if you are currently in the middle of moving home, your old address will be the one that is taken into account. Make sure you take the necessary measures to redirect your mail to your new address.

Can I switch suppliers right now?

Your immediate thought may have been that you needed to switch to a new contract yourself. However, customers have to wait to be contacted by their new supplier before they do this. This way, you will be able to be contacted by them and work out any credit issues you had with Avro Energy, as well as ask any questions Octopus Energy might have answers to.

Do I have to stay with Octopus Energy, my appointed supplier?

No - while you have to wait to be contacted before you make a move, you are entirely free to switch suppliers later on. You will not have to pay an exit fee when you do this.

What happens if I was in the process of switching suppliers when Avro Energy went bust?

Not to worry, the switching process you'd initiated will still be taken into account, and you will safely switch to the supplier you had chosen (assuming it is still active).

Octopus Energy tariffs

While you will be put on a deemed tariff that only Octopus Energy can communicate to you, you may be interested to know what other energy plans and tariffs the supplier has to offer. To give you an overview of these plans, Octopus Energy offers you variable rate tariffs, fixed-rate tariffs, and E7 (Economy 7) tariffs.

Octopus Energy average annual total cost

Below you can find the cost information associated with these tariffs.

Octopus Variable Rate Tariffs

Octopus currently has one variable rate tariff.

The costs associated with this tariff can be seen here:

OCT Fixed Rate Tariffs

OCT has several fixed rate tariff plans. We have an overview of them down below.

The pricing on these tariffs can be seen here:

Octopus Economy 7 Tariffs

At Octopus you can also become a client if you have an economy 7 meter. They have several plans for economy 7 customers.

As mentioned previously, these tariffs have two separate unit rates, one for peak hours of consumption and another for off-peak.

Pricing on these tariffs can be seen here:

Could Avro Energy have been the supplier I’d been looking for?

What made Avro Energy different?

• One of the ways in which Avro energy kept things simple is by only offering dual fuel deals and not sourcing green options. In simple terms they provided a no frills back to basic option with a wide range of tariffs.
• All of the deals were fixed rate for 12 months and payable by a monthly Direct Debit, although Avro Energy also offered a pre-payment meter option.
• Despite only having been around for 5 years or so, Avro Energy had already built a fairly sizeable customer base and managed to outscore the traditional Big Six energy suppliers in terms of customer satisfaction.

Let’s take a look at Avro Energy in more detail to see if they lived up to the promise of a simple and affordable energy solution...

A brief history of Avro Energy

The Avro Energy story begins back in 2012 when managing director Jake Brown decided that, in his words, it was time for ‘a different approach to simplistic supply’. They began supplying energy to customers in 2015 and fairly quickly built to a customer base which now numbers 40,000 electricity customers and 30,000 gas customers. The tariffs offered came without exit fees and the Avro energy login process had been made as quick and simple as possible. The overall Avro energy offering could be summed up as follows:

• Simple billing.
• Most bills were paid via monthly Direct Debit.
• Highly competitive pricing.
• An online presence which was basic but easy to use.

Unfortunately, as of 2021, Avro Energy has ceased trading, and it is no longer possible to get your energy from this supplier.

If you’re looking for a cutting edge energy supplier with a huge range of options and an app for every device then Avro Energy may not have been the supplier for you. On the other hand, if you want an affordable tariff which you can basically set up and then forget about, it could have been the ideal choice. The question is whether the experience of buying energy from Avro Energy lived up to the promise of simplicity, so we decided to find out.

How easy was it to switch to Avro Energy?

The Avro Energy switching process had been kept as simple as possible. Although their website listed no fewer than 189 different tariffs – ranging from Simple Energy, through Simple and Connect all the way to Simple and uSuperior 12m – the choice was made automatically when you registered with the company. You simply had to provide the following information:

• Your address.
• Your gas and electricity usage as measured by the most recent bills.
• The amount you spend on gas and electricity per month or year.
• Your current supplier and the current tariff.
• Your current payment method.

Armed with this information the Avro Energy website would provide a quote detailing how much you could save per year and what the monthly Direct Debit amount would be. It should be noted that, although Avro Energy did supply energy to customers with prepayment meters, this option wasn’t offered on their simple switch page.

The easiest way to switch to Avro, or any other energy supplier, is to contact Papernest on 0330 818 6223 and our Switch plan will take care of everything else.

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Avro Energy Customer Service

The best way of judging the customer service offered by Avro energy is to look at the ratings provided by objective sources such as Trustpilot and the Citizens Advice Bureau.

On Trustpilot there are 35,990 reviews listed for Avro energy, with the overwhelming majority being positive, and an overall score of 4.7 out of 5:

• 77% of the ratings are Excellent.
• 18% of the ratings are Great.
• Only 3% of the ratings are Poor.

A typical Trustpilot comment on Avro Energy is:

‘We've just switched - we're saving a substantial amount of money and I've found customer service very helpful and efficient so far.’

To go more in-depth on Avro Energy reviews and what people thought of their energy supply with this partner, visit our dedicated article.

How could I contact Avro?

Like everything else about Avro Energy the Customer Service had been streamlined. There was no app or online live chat option, and the only means of contacting Avro Energy were:

• Calling: 0330 088 5754
• Email via support@avroenergy.co.uk
• Customer service was open and available from 9.00am until 5.30am Mon-Thurs and 9.00am until 4.30pm on Fridays

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FAQ

What role is Ofgem playing in the gas price crisis?

Ofgem, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets, is a regulator whose current role is to assign new suppliers to customers whose suppliers have gone bust. Their usual responsibilities include making sure all energy consumers receive energy at the lowest cost possible, and with fair and equal treatment.

Which energy suppliers have gone bust in 2021?

As of September 2021, Ofgem reports the disappearance of Avro Energy, Green Supplier Limited, People's Energy, Utility Point, PFP Energy, MoneyPlus Energy, Hub Energy, Green Network Energy, and Simplicity Energy (disappearances ranked from most to least recent here).