Compare energy plans, receive a $250 payment, and save

The Power Saving Bonus is back, bigger than before! This year’s offer is a $250 payment for comparing energy offers using Victorian Energy Compare.

All household customers are eligible (not just concession card holders, as in the last round), and you’re still eligible if you have previously claimed the $250 concession card bonus from the last round or the $50 bonus from earlier rounds.

You don’t need to change plans to be eligible, just to compare plans. Typical savings of $300 per year have been reported. My household identified better pricing on our existing plan, saving around $220 per year, and a conversation with our retailer has identified another tariff, better suited to our needs, which could save us even more.

Grab a recent energy bill, go to the Victorian Energy Compare website and submit your application. If you have a pdf copy of the bill you can upload it and most of the application will be filled out for you! The application process is quick (5-10 minutes using the uploaded pdf method). The offers come back immediately and you can explore and compare offers, have interesting offers emailed to you for follow up, or contact the supplier immediately to switch plans.

The website allows you to filter the offers to include only those with a green power component. Unfortunately it’s not possible to specify the percentage green power you want, but it’s easy to see what percentage of each offer is “green” by hovering your pointer over the green flower symbol in the offer.

The best outcome from this process is to receive the $250 payment, switch to a more cost-effective plan and invest some or all of the savings to improve your home’s energy efficiency.

I expect to hear within 10 days whether my application for the payment has been approved. I’ll be “all ears” for energy-saving ideas at the Council and MRSG winter energy workshop with the Australian Energy Foundation on 28th July.