Peoples Energy
Since 2017 Dalkeith (near Edinburgh, Scotland) based People's Energy has been supplying gas and electricity for both domestic and business and now supplies over 205,000 customers.
I've been a customer for several years now and joined them because of their fair pricing, source renewable energy from the UK (and soon green gas) and pay back profits to their customers (profit payments expected in 2022).
As fair pricing goes they are better value than the likes of Octopus Energy and Bulb but not quite as cheap as the cheapest energy suppliers.
The Peoples Energy Company
They're called 'The Peoples Energy Company' for a reason, they are a registered social enterprise putting people first rather than profits. They have customer representatives on the board that you can elect.
As well as a fair price promise to customers they also pay their staff a living wage.
Who owns People's Energy?
Husband and wife team David Pike and Karin Sode own The People's Energy company. However a 75% share of the profits go back to the energy firms customers.
Are they a good gas and electricity company?
In my experience yes, I've spoken to many company representatives and their staff are very open and honest. They have no intention of robbing you blind or misleading you like many of the big utility companies have over the years.
In fact the company is very transparent and even publishes the board meeting minutes on their website.
You can get a quote on their website to see how much you can save compared to your current supplier. They also pay 75% of the companies profits back to their customers.
Peoples Energy Tariffs
They offer Standard variable, 1 and 2 year fixed as well as a prepayment. They do state that they purposefully offer a low cost prepayment tariff as gas and electricity through prepayment meters cost more than standard meters.
At the time of writing (October 2020) I did compare The People's Prepay tariff against the whole of the market and they did come out as the second overall cheapest at £83.64 a month only slightly more expensive than the cheapest prepayment tariff from Omni (Omni prepay variable) costing £82.54 month.
All of the rates offered are 100% renewable electricity and they plan to offer renewable gas in the future.
People's Energy Fixed Tariffs
They offer 1 and 2 year fix's. Fixed price tariffs are where the unit rates you pay for your gas and electricity are fixed for the term of the deal. It means the rate you pay for each unit of gas or electricity you use stays the same price for 12 or 24 months. It doesn't mean the amount you pay overall stays the same, you will still pay more if you use more. A fixed rate means that your costs are more predictable but most fixed deals have an early exit fee should you choose to switch before the end of your current deal.
1 Year Fixed Rate Tariffs
People's Energy Fixed Tariff
| Date | Tariff Name | Electricity daily standing charge | Electricity pence per KWh | Gas daily standing charge | Gas pence per KWh | Monthly cost |
| March 2021 | People's Energy Fixed Tariff March 21 | 23.31 | 15.16 | 23.31 | 2.65 | £79.79 |
| Feb 2021 | People's Energy Fixed Tariff February 21 v3 | 23.31 | 15.44 | 23.31 | 2.71 | £81.18 |
| Jan 2021 | People's Energy Fixed Tariff December 20 | 22.26 | 16.14 | 22.26 | 2.82 | £83.48 |
| Dec 2020 | People's Energy Fixed Tariff November 20 v3 | 22.26 | 15.80 | 22.26 | 2.63 | £80.67 |
| Sept 2020 | People's Energy Fixed Tariff September 20 v3 | 22.26 | 15.81 | 22.26 | 2.54 | £79.77 |
People's Energy Fixed Tariff March 21
The March 2021 1 year fix is slightly cheaper than last month due to a reduction in the kWh rate for gas and electricity. For a typical household it would cost £79.79 a month which brings prices back to the lower rates they were at the end of last year.
People's Energy Fixed Tariff December 20
The 'People's Energy Fixed Tariff December 20' is a 12 month fix with a £30 per fuel early exit fee. The cost of this 1 year deal is £83.48. It's about £3 per month more expensive than 4 or 5 months ago as energy prices, particularly electricity have increased. All energy suppliers have been increasing the cost of their energy tariffs so at the moment it's about getting the best deal out there.
Fixed Tariff November 20 v3
The Fixed Tariff November 20 v3 replaces the September 20 v3 in November 2020. The cost of this deal for the average UK household is £80.67 a month or £968.05 over the course of a year. The cost has increased slightly by 90 pence a month compared to the previous deal. The reason for the increase is the change in per kWh unit cost of gas from 2.54p to 2.63p per kWh.
Fixed Tariff September 20 v3
The 12 month fixed 'Fixed Tariff September 20 v3' costs £957.30 a year which works out at £79.77 per month. There is a lower priced early exit fee of £30 per fuel.
People's Energy Fixed Saver Tariff Dec 20
Their 1 year fixed saver now costs £82.89 from January 2021 (£77.63 a month in September 2020) which is about £5 a month increase in cost for the average household. The Saver Tariff is the best 1 year fix they currently offer having the lowest cost out of the three 12 month fixes and also the lowest early exit fee at £60 for a dual fuel tariff.
People's Energy Exclusive Tariff
| Date | Tariff Name | Electricity daily standing charge | Electricity pence per KWh | Gas daily standing charge | Gas pence per KWh | Monthly cost |
| Jan 2021 | People's Energy Exclusive 12M December 20 | 22.26 | 16.26 | 22.26 | 2.87 | £84.19 |
| Sept 2020 | People's Energy Exclusive 12M September 20 | 22.26 | 15.91 | 22.26 | 2.53 | £79.94 |
People's Energy Exclusive 12M December 20
People's 1 year exclusive fixed rate tariff now costs £84.19 a month as we see an increase in the cost of electricity and gas. They have not increased the daily standing charge just the kWh rate for gas and electric. The change in price sees a small increase from the previous £79.94 a month, so about a £4 increase for this 12 month deal.
Exclusive 12M September 20
The 1 year fixed energy offer 'Exclusive 12M September 20' would cost the average UK household £959.31 a year or £79.94 a month. There is also a £90 (£45 per fuel) early exit fee.
People's Energy Fixed Saver Tariff
| Date | Tariff Name | Electricity daily standing charge | Electricity pence per KWh | Gas daily standing charge | Gas pence per KWh | Monthly cost |
| Jan 2021 | People's Energy Fixed Saver Tariff Dec 20 | 22.26 | 16.09 | 22.26 | 2.78 | £82.89 |
| Sept 2020 | People's Energy Fixed Saver Tariff Sep 20 v2 | 22.26 | 15.25 | 22.26 | 2.47 | £77.63 |
Fixed Saver Tariff Sep 20 v2
The 'Fixed Saver Tariff Sep 20 v2' is the cheapest on offer from them costing £931.55 pey year or £77.63 a month. This 1 year fix has a £30 per fuel early exit fee.
2 Year Fixed Rate Tariffs
| Date | Tariff Name | Electricity daily standing charge | Electricity pence per KWh | Gas daily standing charge | Gas pence per KWh | Monthly cost |
| Feb 2021 | People's Energy 2 Year Fixed Tariff December 20 | 22.26 | 16.95 | 22.26 | 2.91 | £86.46 |
| Sept 2020 | People's Energy 2 Year Fixed Tariff September 20 | 22.26 | 16.43 | 22.26 | 2.73 | £83.27 |
People's Energy 2 Year Fixed Tariff December 20
The 24 month fixed deal 'People's Energy 2 Year Fixed Tariff December 20' which is the longest fix they offer has increased the kWh cost slightly so the average monthly rate is now £86.46 compared to the previous £83.24 a month. It remains one of the best 2 year fixed energy deals on the market. They've also been quite good in not increasing the standing charge for any of their tariffs and only increasing the cost of the energy to reflect the changes in the wholesale market.
2 Year Fixed Tariff September 20
The longest fix they offer is the 24 month '2 Year Fixed Tariff September 20' which costs the average UK household £999.29 a year which is £83.27 a month. There is a £90 exit fee on this dual fuel tariff so you will want to make sure you are ready to commit for 2 years. The fee only applies if you want to leave your deal early.
People's Energy Variable Rate Tariffs
Variable rate tariffs mean that the unit price you are charged for each unit can go up or down. Price changes do not tend to happen that often, maybe 2 or 3 times over the course of a year at most. Variable tariffs are usually cheaper and there are no exit fees so should your supplier increase their prices you are free to switch without any penalties.
| Date | Tariff Name | Electricity daily standing charge | Electricity pence per KWh | Gas daily standing charge | Gas pence per KWh | Monthly cost |
| Feb 2021 | The People's Tariff | 22.26 | 16.77 | 22.26 | 3.09 | £87.79 |
| Jan 2021 | The People's Tariff | 22.26 | 16.10 | 22.26 | 2.79 | £83.02 |
| Dec 2020 | The People's Tariff | 22.26 | 15.22 | 22.26 | 2.48 | £77.71 |
The People's Tariff
The variable rate tariff they offer is 'The People's Tariff' costing £932.52 a year working out at £77.71 a month as at September 2020. There are no early exit fees with this variable rate.
Having checked the variable rate again in December 2020 we found that the price they charge has not changed since the last check in Septerber 2020.
January 2021 price update
The People's Tariff which is The People's Energy variable rate has seen a change in price in January 2021 with an increase in the unit cost of electricity and gas. It is the first time in a while they have increased the cost of this tariff as they do try to keep their prices fair and only increase them when they have to.
As mentioned previously UK energy prices have seen an increase across the board particularly as we went from 2020 to 2021. The People's Tariff costs the average household £83.02 a month compared to £77.71 a month prior to September 2020. They've managed to keep their variable rate costs the same for at least 5 months which shows that they don't increase prices unless they have no choice.
People's Energy Prepay Tariffs
| Date | Tariff Name | Electricity daily standing charge | Electricity pence per KWh | Gas daily standing charge | Gas pence per KWh | Monthly cost |
| Feb 2021 | The People's Prepay | 27.26 | 16.02 | 27.26 | 2.57 | £83.64 |
The People's Prepay
Prepayment is usually more expensive than standard rates although Peoples Energy are more ethical and so do not charge as much as most other providers. Prepayment means that you pay for your gas and electric up front like a pay as you go mobile, either topping up online or at a paypoint or post office where the service is available.
The prepayment tariff 'The People's Prepay' is one of the cheapest prepayment deals available and from a company that is unlikely to try and profit from the fact you are stuck with a prepayment meter.
As mentioned earlier this is the second overall cheapest at £83.64 a month or £1003.64 over the course of a year. Exit fees do not apply to this prepayment offer.
The unit rate and standing charge have not changed from September 2020 when the prices were checked again in December 2020 and again in January 2021.
People's Energy continue to offer one of the best deals for customers on prepayment meters as they aim to help those who are least likely to be able to afford energy costs.
People's Energy Review
As a customer I can give an honest review of how they are as an energy company. I joined them in 2018 after leaving Outfox the Market, Outfox is great if you want dirt cheap bills but they had a few issues in 2018 I switched to them after a lot of research.
They are not for you if you are looking for the cheapest dual fuel supplier, in fact my energy bill went up after the switch as they are about £6 a month more expensive than the cheapest Outfox the Market tariff.
The reason I switched was because I wanted to support a company that was actually doing something good. Way back I was an Ecotricity customer and they are also a great company doing good things but quite frankly they were too pricey, if you could afford to support Ecotricity then great. They are a supplier looking to target the average household whereas Ecotricity is a supplier for middle class households.
I'm probably not meant to say that but it is what it is.
Both Ecotricity and the People's Energy company both have great customer support ie the phone rings, someone answers it and you get your query answered. Outfox the Market not so much but their prices were great.