Switching from Contact Good Nights to Powershop - Any Experience with Buying Powershop Packs?

Madao on 09/11/2023 - 17:41
Last edited 09/11/2023 - 18:20 by 1 other user

So my Contact Good Nights fixed term plan is up and it looks like they are hiking the daily fee.

Submitted my recent bill of $226 to Powershop and they've come back reconning through them it would have only been $168.

Put the same bill in to Powerswitch and it also came back Powershop would be the best to switch to, estimated savings of $700 a year.

I see Powershop are also offering free power for the first weekend each month for 12 months too.

However, this whole model of buying "packs" of power to secure their cheapest rates looks like quite a faff. Does anyone have any experience with this, is it easy to do, are you going to get proper screwed if you dont spend time actively managing the account, how much time or effort is required here?

Cheers

General Discussion Electricity

Comments

  • spam on 09/11/2023 - 21:27
    +1

    I was with Powershop before I was with Contact.

    Like you said, the "packs" buying is a faff. You had to keep purchasing "packs" to get to their best advertised rate. My experience was too much of a gimmick, and looking back I have never get to their advertised rate when I joined even with buying the special packs. Not sure how, perhaps this includes the future packs where you get % discount and increased if you buy further out (e.g. 6% if you buy January pack for $x to be used in January).
    I think I ended up paying less than before because of the $150 joining fee that they offer which were also spread across 12 months.

    In terms of time or effort, if you use the app, it'll give notification whenever there is special pack available to buy, then you do it on the app.

  • ABCDEFG on 10/11/2023 - 06:12
    +1

    Currently with Powershop, can also confirm that buying the packs is a bit of a faff. It's not at all difficult to do, and it's not a heap of extra admin, but it is one more thing to have to self manage.

  • flembots on 10/11/2023 - 07:11
    +1

    I was with Powershop for a year and actually enjoyed buying the packs. I turned the notifications on and just went and added it to cart whenever they popped up and then completed the checkout whenever it was the end of the month or I had enough money in there.

  • Aba22 on 10/11/2023 - 07:14

    It’s pretty easy to buy the packs and you want to buy months in advance for the best specials (I think you can do 6 months ahead for 10% off) which become available on the first of the month. They also notify you if there is a random special. We shifted to Nau Mai Ra though and have saved heaps just with no daily charge since PowerShop increased theirs.

  • justaddwater on 10/11/2023 - 07:29

    i was with powershops years ago. Found the gamification experience of buying "discounted" top ups annoying after 1 to 2 years

    i mean it's a few clicks on your phone now i guess but back then i had to use the computer iirc

  • Kate1 on 10/11/2023 - 08:22

    Been with powershop for nearly 10 years, buying the specials isn't that bad, definitely saves you money and you do need to do it to get better prices on your power. Don't have the free weekend power, must be a new thing.
    With the specials, they have random ones normally things like halloween, etc, Main specials are the future power packs(can buy 2 only), where if you buy them when they first come available you save 10%, goes down each month by 2&% I think.. On the first day of the month, a pack called staying power (discount is dependent on how long you have been with them, up to a max of 5 years) comes available to buy, thats when I buy it and the future packs. In Winter they have regular weekly specials.
    My bug bear is they changed how they did the packs, now they don't advertise how many units you are buying in the packs, they say it in days, which is annoying.
    Their customer service isn't as good as it was, used to be brilliant.
    Definitely get the app, tells you when the specials are.
    Can take a bit to get your head round it, but easy to do.
    I am in Auckland with the lines company Vector, which brought in peak/off peak pricing which is really annoying last year.
    This year they have changed it so its all the same unit charge for the period Oct to March, but for some reason Powershop didn't advertise that fact, I found it when I was looking at my rates.

    • Surreal on 10/11/2023 - 08:32
      +1

      I optimized the faff a tiny bit now by ignoring the notification at the start of the month about staying power, because that offer never disappears. (other themed specials last only a few days I think).
      Instead I wait until the first random special appears about a week later. Open the app, buy that special, and the staying power monthly special, and buy the 2 future packs for 4 months ahead at 10% discount. Select pay later.

      Subsequent themed specials during the month I open up the app and buy.

      I am actually overbuying a little bit so I ignore any special less than 10% discount.

  • hacatan on 10/11/2023 - 08:48

    I was with the Good Nights Plan from the beginning, latest price hike has driven me away (up 23% Nov 22, up 12% Nov 23) Switched to Meridian EV Plan (have to have an EV to be eligible and 24c 7am-9pm, 11c 9pm-7am gst incl) Currently expect the monthly bill to be approx 5% higher (first bill not in yet but previously ~$200/m) but fixed for 2 years and $200 sign on bonus. Went with it for peace of mind and give the proverbial to Contact for being so greedy.

    • spam on 10/11/2023 - 09:35

      Interesting.. I stayed with Contact after my fixed term ends (30c daily -> 90c daily; 30c/kwh -> 27c/kwh). They have now increase the unit price to 31c/kwh but based on my calculation it would still be cheaper to stay with the Good nights plan even with others sign up bonus.
      Perhaps using 50-60% of daily power in the 3 hour period helps as the night rate on other providers isn't enough to reduce my total bills

    • dekodE on 12/11/2023 - 14:56

      How do they authenticate that you have an EV?

      • hacatan on 15/11/2023 - 07:05

        They ask for the rego.

  • hacatan on 10/11/2023 - 14:46

    It may be an area/low/high user thing. My free power was average 54% of my total power over the year. I’m a high user (13,300kWh) last year. The initial Contact fixed term prices (gst excl) were $1.712 daily, 17.40c/kWh and the latest increase (Nov 1st) brings it to $2.273 daily and 23.9c/kWh, 32.7% increase in daily, 37% in kWh rate. Went back over the year comparing Contact/Meridian using same power each day to arrive at my figures.

  • xsolider on 10/11/2023 - 15:16

    With them for a year. Got so annoyed with the buying packs idea. Yes, it's just a few clicks on the screen when the notifications come up. But these special packs are always small values. At the end of each billing cycle, you have to choose extra power packs from their store if you want to save money. For me, it's really not a nice experience that I would expect from a utility company.

  • FireWhenReady on 11/11/2023 - 12:56

    I am with Powershop and have $1000 in prepaid power. I wonder whether it would be more worthwhile investing that money (as I'm sure Powershop are). My bills have gone up since leaving the Goodnight plan with Contact but power seems to have gone up with every provider. I've stuck with them because Powershop are backed by Meridian Energy who are 100% renewable.

    • mpc on 12/11/2023 - 12:54
      +1

      Meridian being 100% renewable is a marketing gimmick. They have a significant contract with one of the other power generators (think it's Genesis) which means they buy Genesis produced power (they own Huntley power plant which is the highest polluting in NZ) when Meridian can't produce enough of their own electricity (low lake levels/wind). So while Meridian themselves have 100% renewable power generation the power they 'supply' isn't always 100% renewable.

        • mpc on 12/11/2023 - 21:58

          From their website https://www.meridianenergy.co.nz/power-stations/electricity-…

          We also have financial contracts with other generators, so we’re protected from higher wholesale market prices. One of these is a hedge contract or “swaption” with Genesis Energy. We have similar financial contracts with other generators which together with a range of other financial instruments, help us achieve greater price certainty for our customers and more reliable returns for our investors.

          Plus here https://www.meridianenergy.co.nz/news-and-events/meridian-an…

          • FireWhenReady on 13/11/2023 - 13:38

            @mpc: This is good to know (and disappointing). Are there any power companies in NZ who are 100% renewable? Looks like Mercury have similar arrangements?

            • justaddwater on 13/11/2023 - 14:13

              @FireWhenReady: Ecotricity

            • mpc on 13/11/2023 - 14:19
              +1

              @FireWhenReady: @FireWhenReady I don't think so as it's the classic problem of renewable generation sources, they're not always 100% reliable. When we hit a dry year the hydro lakes have to be managed to not drop below set levels, wind doesn't always blow and there's not 24/7 solar. It'll improve with the likes of batteries, solar efficiency etc. but it's going to be very difficult and expensive to get an electricity system that can work all the time on 100% renewables.
              The previous govt's investigation into Lake Onslow is one attempt at this but the latest preliminary figure is it would cost $16B (https://www.mbie.govt.nz/building-and-energy/energy-and-natu…).
              There might be some small generators which truly offer 100% renewable, probably via solar and batteries, but most of that is put in place for a reason e.g. new data centres and corporates buy it as it can offset emissions or help their carbon reduction strategies.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join