Marina Electricity Charges

[ExSurveyor]

Having just found out the unit charge has increased to 77p a unit,  up from 60p a unit, what are others paying.

[Jbx5]

Hi Mark just checked our last bill 86 units used 6th sept to 6th dec @ 19p per unit plus service charge total £32.00. Don’t know if they class a unit the same though. Battery charger and a dehumidifier coming on 4 hours a day, 2 tube heaters in engine bay.

John 

[rightsaidfred]

I would think there is no one answer to this,  it depends on the contract the marina has negotiated with their supplier of choice, there is also the question of whether they have a pre payment card system that could give you several months use on an earlier price or billed quarterly or more at current price, there is also the question of whether or not there is a standing charge.

Fred

[Davydine]

If it is a metered supply, the marina should be reselling electricity at the same rate that they are buying it. Are they really paying that much? They can of course charge you a service charge as in John's example above.

Ofgem regulations for reselling gas and electricity

[ExSurveyor]

It is a pre paid card system with an annual connection charge.

It appears that the higher rate has been in force for some time but the increase has been held back.

There is no mark up on what they are charged.

The last couple of years have been a gamble on getting fixed commercial contracts and many firms have got it wrong with hindsight.

[dom]

I didn't think the restiction on reselling applied in non-residential contexts, but examples 8a/page 10 seems to suggest it does.

[PaulN]

20 hours ago, ExSurveyor said:

Having just found out the unit charge has increased to 77p a unit,  up from 60p a unit, what are others paying.

The marina where we moor has jumped up as 4 years ago the marina owner negotiated a 4 year fixed contract with the electricity company which we have had the benefit of, but this has now expired and the electricity company has increased the rate. There is no mark up on the cost to us, it is charged at the same rate that the marina owner pays.

[Meantime]

11 minutes ago, dom said:

I didn't think the restiction on reselling applied in non-residential contexts, but examples 8a/page 10 seems to suggest it does.

It very much applies. The only situations it doesn't apply are in Commercial or Industrial, so shops, offices etc.

So it does apply to Marinas, campsites and the BA.

They can only sell on the electric at cost. I doubt very much if anyone is paying 77p per unit!!!!! I've never paid anywhere near that at home. Even when prices were at their highest I doubt anyone was paying 77p per unit.

They are entitled to pass on the cost of any standing charge they pay, either as a separate fee, or by estimating and spreading over the total units they expect to resell in a year.

If they run their own distribution and metering, cabling etc, then they are also allowed to pass on that cost, normally as a separate fee.

If you are paying an annual connection fee then that should cover your share of the standing charge and your share of the infrastructure costs. Annual testing, maintenance of meters and card readers etc. Then the unit cost should be at cost price.

Others will take their known costs, standing charge, infrastructure costs etc and then estimate how many units they expect to resell in a year and add an uplift to cover the fixed costs. This is open to abuse if the number of units resold is vastly in excess of the number of units estimated to be sold. However in that case there should be a refund worked out, or they leave themselves open to a small claims case.

However, and this is the crux of the matter, a lot of it will come down to how happy you are in your chosen marina. There maybe an over charge, and you may want to point this out to your marina, who are under no obligation to offer you a berth next year. Unfair, yes, but sometimes that is life.

[Meantime]

Just double checked and my marina, as of last July issued a notice saying they were reducing the cost of a unit from 53p to 49p. They do not charge a standing charge, connection charge or fee for the card used to top up the meter.

So the unit cost includes the marina's estimate of their running costs in relation to standing charge, annual testing and provision of infrastructure, meters, cards etc. So the true unit cost would be something lower than 49p per unit.

I don't use a lot of electric so for me an all price price per unit is better than paying a separate annual connection or standing charge.

[ExSurveyor]

The charge is 77p a unit, which is what they are buying in at.

It is also the cost they are paying for there own substantial consumption.

Like many, they seem to have fixed at the peak of the increases but at least have held off passing on the new rate.

Fortunately I loaded up a couple hundred pounds worth before the increase. Hopefully the fixed contract is a short one.

It is a price I am willing and able to pay as I really like my mooring.

[Meantime]

1 minute ago, ExSurveyor said:

The charge is 77p a unit, which is what they are buying in at.

It is also the cost they are paying for there own substantial consumption.

Like many, they seem to have fixed at the peak of the increases but at least have held off passing on the new rate.

Fortunately I loaded up a couple hundred pounds worth before the increase. Hopefully the fixed contract is a short one.

It is a price I am willing and able to pay as I really like my mooring.

Did you add units to your meter, or money?

My marina you add credit, so my last top up was £50 when they change the unit price you get more or less units for the credit on the meter. Similar to the BA where your £1 card buys you £1 credit on the post at whatever that days unit price is.

 

[ExSurveyor]

22 minutes ago, Meantime said:

Did you add units to your meter, or money?

My marina you add credit, so my last top up was £50 when they change the unit price you get more or less units for the credit on the meter. Similar to the BA where your £1 card buys you £1 credit on the post at whatever that days unit price is.

 

Luckily they load units.

[PaulN]

2 hours ago, ExSurveyor said:

The charge is 77p a unit, which is what they are buying in at.

It is also the cost they are paying for there own substantial consumption.

Like many, they seem to have fixed at the peak of the increases but at least have held off passing on the new rate.

Fortunately I loaded up a couple hundred pounds worth before the increase. Hopefully the fixed contract is a short one.

It is a price I am willing and able to pay as I really like my mooring.

Our charge went up on 1st October 2023 to 30p per unit no standing charge.