Understanding Your Tariff

If you’re looking for more information on the kind of tariff set-up you have or wondering about which one is best suited to your usage habits, we’re here to help shed some light.

What is a tariff?

Simply put, a tariff refers to the way in which you’re billed. Depending on the tariff structure, you may be billed on different rates at different times of the day, the amount of usage you consume, or whether you’ve chosen to wire certain appliances to a specific tariff to reap the benefits of it.

Time-of-Use

A Time-of-Use tariff is split into peak- and off-peak times, where usage will be billed on different rates according to when you consume energy.

Flat-rate

Flat-rate tariffs bill on usage at the same fixed rate at all hours of the day.

Controlled load

A controlled load tariff is applicable only to certain appliances, for example, a hot water system or anything else that consumes a high amount of energy.

Demand

Demand tariffs will charge you at a certain rate at the time you use, or demand, the most power in the day.

Feed-in

A feed-in tariff, or FIT, is structured to be set up in conjunction with your solar panels. Any excess solar generation is reflected as a solar feed-in credit on your bill.

Electricity distributors Australia-wide are eager for customers to experience the benefits of moving to a Time-of-Use tariff.

While you’ll have the option to opt-out of this change, the benefits of moving to a Time-of-Use tariff often outweigh the others available. If you’d like to know more about your other options, please contact us.

What is a Time-of-Use tariff?

A Time-of-Use, or TOU tariff is one that allows you to take advantage of specific times of the day that you use the most power. The timings will be dependent on which state you reside in, and whether your meter is under a Residential or Business classification.

To find out what the Time-of-Use timings are applicable in your state, please head to the following link on our website: TOU Timings – 1st Energy

If you’re not on a Time-of-Use tariff already, you may not be aware of the positive impacts it can have on your energy consumption, such as:

Utilising peak and off-peak times of the day according to when you use specific appliances. For example, maximising your power consumption when you’re at home during the day
Making use of more cost-effective rates
Monitoring your usage habits and solar imports

Moving to a Time-of-Use tariff involves exchanging your meter over to a smart meter, if you don’t already have one. With the ability to capture your energy consumption in real-time, recorded in intervals, you’ll have a much better understanding of your usage patterns and consumption habits.

What are the benefits of a smart meter?

A smart meter records all your usage data in 5-minute intervals that is then sent to us remotely in order to bill you. This means you can log into your 1st Energy online self-service account to monitor your usage habits at any time, giving you the ability to maintain awareness of what you’re using and when.

It also means your meter doesn’t have to be read in person. If there’s an obstruction to the meter or something that prevents the meter reader from obtaining a read, such as bad weather, no access, or pets at the property, then a bill will be estimated as a result. Having a smart meter means you’ll receive actual bills, with no need to worry about if your meter can be accessed.

What about shoulder usage?

Shoulder usage will no longer be utilised moving forward and will be made obsolete to reflect more cost-effective tariffs, such as Time-of-Use.

If you have any additional queries, please give our friendly team a call on 1300 426 594 from 9am – 5pm AEST Monday – Friday.

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