Electricity and gas: switching to the basic supplier, is it worth it?

show description

Berlin. Among the suppliers of gas and electricity There are significant price differences from city to city. This was the result of a study by the Federal Association of Consumer Centers (vzbv). The association looked at offers in 14 major cities. When it comes to electricity, the basic supplier is the cheapest in all cities, according to consumer advocates. To the Gas there was only one supplier cheaper than the local basic supplier.

“Many energy supplier they announced their new year Prices increase. Consumers should take a close look here and compare prices,” says Sabine Lund, energy expert at vzbv. Read also: Bundestag decides on energy price brakes – what applies now

How big is the price differences are shown by the extreme examples Bremen and Leipzig. According to the study, gas customers in the Hanseatic city also had to pay higher prices energy prices to accept. However, with a 17% increase this year, growth has remained moderate. The fair city’s basic provider, on the other hand, added a whopping 114%. Households with an annual consumption of 20,000 kilowatt hours had to pay 243 euros more in Bremen and 2,056 euros more in Leipzig. In some cities, customers have even had to accept several price increases.

Energy crisis: where gas from the default supplier is particularly expensive

Electricity prices for basic providers in Dortmund are higher

A different picture emerges for electricity. Here are some basic health care they even lowered their prices, at most by 15%. With an annual consumption of 3,500 kilowatt hours, customers in Nuremberg pay 33 euros less, in Frankfurt am Main, Leipzig, Bremen and Munich they save even 155 euros. In Hamburg and Berlin electricity prices remained broadly stable, in the other seven cities they increased by up to 25%. Dortmund is the leader. In the Ruhr city, the basic supply of electricity costs a model family 308 euros more.

It is also instructive to watch the Prices by the market watchers of the vzbv. In November, electricity costs between 22 and 40 cents per kilowatt hour at basic suppliers. On average, companies charged 31 cents. The gross strike price of gas ranged from eight to 19 cents, with an average of twelve cents. Electricity and gas price brake often it should have no effect if the development stays the same. The price cap for electricity is nine cents higher, for gas it corresponds to the current price structure.

Utilities Raise Electricity and Gas Prices: Expert Help Makes Sense

Study is based on November rates. Some, even among the basic providers, will not be updated for much longer. More than 400 suppliers in Germany have already announced price increases for January 1st. “Consumers should look closely at price increases and, if in doubt, seek advice,” advises the association, which in turn runs advisory centres. Also interesting: The gas price brake should apply retroactively from January

Expert help can be helpful, because not all surcharges from suppliers are appropriate and permissible. For example, companies have to meet certain deadlines. Furthermore, they are not allowed to suddenly add anything to the agreed price guarantees.

Gas: this is decisive for the level of consumer costs

Also, the federal government associated with the energy price brake, another condition for suppliers. The basic gas supply price cannot exceed the level of September 30th of this year. These are the costs for the supply, rental of the meter or billing. Here they can only be increased with good justifications, for example if the state raises the prices Duties I would ask.

According to vzbv’s remarks, most of those that have now been announced refer price increases anyway on the price of the work. These are the consumption costs of each customer. The gas supply costs are decisive for the amount. This, in turn, is a trade secret of any company.

Switch provider: It is worth taking a look at the comparison portals

The basic suppliers are often the municipal ones municipal utilities, secure gas deliveries, for example if another supplier goes bankrupt or no longer wants to deliver. According to vzbv, with the exception of Leipzig, they are consistently cheaper than competing companies on the open market. UP modify it should therefore hardly be worth it at the moment. Consumers can check whether this is changing by regularly making inquiries on the websites of various comparison portals on the Internet.

The situation is also complicated by the different standard tariffs. Basic suppliers also offer backup supplies, for example if another supplier goes out of business. Here the prices can deviate from the basic rate of the service. This rule, which went into effect in November, is widely exploited by some municipal suppliers. For example, Essen charges 31 cents per kWh for basic supply, but 85 cents for replacement supply. In some other cities it is Rates about twice as expensive. Gas costs the same in both cases only in Hanover, Düsseldorf, Nuremberg, Munich and Leipzig.