Time to check out peak prices

What time do you use most of your electricity? Understanding how the price of your electricity can change depending on when you use it, could help you save money.

The Checkout ran a segment on how to reduce power bills if you have peak prices and explained how this type of pricing works.

Watch the clip and read on to see if a time-of-use tariff is right for you. Energy Made Easy can help you find the right plan if you decide to switch to a time-of-use tariff.

A time-of-use tariff means that electricity is priced differently at different times of the day:

• Peak – this is when electricity costs the most. Peak rates usually apply in the evenings from Monday to Friday.
• Off-peak – this is when electricity is cheapest. Off-peak rates usually apply overnight, and on Saturday and Sunday.
• Shoulder – this is when electricity costs a bit less than peak. Shoulder rates usually apply in-between peak and off-peak periods.

Typical time-of-use charging windows are shown in the diagram below.

Peak pricing encourages you to use less electricity between 4 pm and 9 pm, which is when most people are using electricity. Being on a time-of-use plan provides opportunities to save money by shifting usage to off-peak periods where possible. A time-of-use tariff plan could be a good choice if:

• you are out a lot in the evenings from Monday to Friday
• you are at home during the day or on weekends
• you use your appliances, like your washing machine, on the weekend.

To get a time-of-use tariff plan, you need a meter that measures your electricity usage at different times of the day. For example, a smart or interval meter.

It is important points to note:

• Time-of-use pricing tariffs are not available in all areas.
• You will only be able to search for flexible pricing tariff plans on Energy Made Easy if they are available in your area.
• Retailers will tell you the start and end times of the different periods for their time-of-use plans in the Basic Plan Information Document.