amaysim’s new energy deal launched, which is like a mobile phone plan

Consumers keen to save on their energy bills are being offered new deals from amaysim that works like a mobile phone plan, but without variable rates and no lock-in contracts.

E xclusive: Consumers keen to save on their energy bills are being offered new deals that work like a mobile phone plan.

Today amaysim is launching three new plans that offer the chance to pay a fixed monthly price for a set amount of energy — with no variable rates or lock-in contracts.

The plans will be rolled out in Victoria first, due to its smart meter roll-out, before expanding to NSW, Queensland and South Australia later in the year.

The plans carry flat rates and no lock-in contracts and will be rolled out in Victoria first, due to its smart meter roll-out, before expanding to NSW, Queensland and South Australia later in the year.

The first plan costs $80 a month for 200 kilowatt hours (kWh) which is recommended for one to two people, with a top-up cost of $20 for 50kWh of power.

The second plan costs $120 a month for 320kWh for three to four people and the top-up fee is $30 for 80kWh of power.

The third plan costs $160 a month, offering 440kWh hours for five or more people and the top-up fee is $40 for an extra 110kWh.

Any unused energy can be rolled over to the next month, and consumers are notified when their power usage needs a top-up.

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Deals for electricity are changing. Picture: Supplied

According to CanstarBlue, an average household of five people consumes roughly 20kWh of electricity a day.

While other prepaid energy plans exist, amaysim CEO Peter O’Connell told News Corp his company’s deal is “transparent and competitive”.

“When I looked at the energy industry it really needed a shake up, products being built were not from being in the customers’ shoes,” he said.

“Other products are sold with very little margin in them so they’re very cheap when you buy them but if you stay for a year or two you’re going to get price rises not caused by wholesale costs, but simply to create margins and we think that’s unfair.

“What you see is what you get, we want people to know how much energy they use, we want to mimic the certainty people have when they enter into a mobile phone plan, so they can manage their energy bills,” he said.

Richard Hurst pictured with partner Singithi Silva, son Tristan, 3, and daughter Talia aged 10 months. They want a better energy plan. Picture: Mark Stewart

Richard Hurst and partner Singithi Silva from Huntingdale in Victoria, saw their energy bill nearly quadruple in price from $80 up to $300 when they had their newborn Talia in September last year.

Ever since she was born, they have struggled to keep their monthly power bills in check.

Mr Hurst, 39, told News Corp they would like to have an electricity plan that helps them to budget and see what they are spending.

“With two small kids and unpredictable Melbourne weather, it’s really hard to predict how much our bill is going to be at the end of the month especially when we see spikes in summer and winter,” he said.

“We have gas and electricity and use the dryer when there’s no other option. We also use a dishwasher and have insulated central heating and we are looking to build another house at the back of our property.

“But we would prefer our energy plan to be a bit more like a mobile phone plan where we know what we are getting ourselves into and there are no surprises.”

“It’s a goal of ours to tie up these loose ends — knowing what your costs are you can then work backwards and avoid bill shock.”

Richard Hurst and his family would consider a prepaid energy plan. Picture: Mark Stewart

The Consumer Law Centre’s Energy Policy Officer Jake Lilley told News Corp prepaid deals like this might be helpful for some but many would benefit from the new Victorian Default Offer (VDO) coming in on July 1 this year, which would be set by the Essential Services Commission, not energy companies.

It aims to allow every Victorian household and small business to ask for a ‘default offer’ from their electricity retailer.

Mr O’Connell said amaysim’s deals would provide more than the default offer.

“We enable customers to carry their unused energy forward to the next month and we have other features coming, VDO products don’t have that,” he said.

Canstar Blue Editor-in-Chief Simon Downes said consumers must check the fine print of any energy deal, prepaid or not.

“amaysim are right in what they say in regards to making energy bills a bit more predictable, but be aware you might go over your limit and have to pay additional charges,” he said.

“Convenience is good but you wouldn’t want to pay too much for it.”

Rolf Hansen and Peter O'Connell, founders of Amaysim. Picture: News Corp