OVO Energy has made a huge change for millions and customers could lose £144 a year

OVO Energy is making it harder for millions of customers to get up to £144 discounts on bills for using less electricity at peak times.

Until February customers could claim a £12 discount on their monthly energy bill if they hit a target of using 8% or less of their total electricity consumption during 4pm to 7pm on weekdays.

Customers have been complaining about the changeCredit: Alamy

This was part of the supplier's popular Power Move scheme.

But now customers hitting the target of using 15% or less than of their total electricity consumption will be entered into a prize draw instead.

Households can still get £10 off bills if they use 2% less of their energy during peaktimes but after May the perk is being completely scrapped.

Ovo has reduced its peak hours from 4pm to 7pm to 5pm to 7pm, in a bid to make the targets easier to reach.

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Previously, only half of customers signed up to the scheme met the 12% target between October 2024 and January 2025.

But customers are unhappy about the change. The switch from cold hard cash to prize draw entries has come as a blow to loyal Ovo customers, many of whom have taken to Ovo’s customer forum to complain about the changes.

4 ways to keep your energy bills low

Laura Court-Jones, Small Business Editor at Bionic shared her tips.

1. Turn your heating down by one degree

You probably won't even notice this tiny temperature difference, but what you will notice is a saving on your energy bills as a result. Just taking your thermostat down a notch is a quick way to start saving fast. This one small action only takes seconds to carry out and could potentially slash your heating bills by £171.70.

2. Switch appliances and lights off

It sounds simple, but fully turning off appliances and lights that are not in use can reduce your energy bills, especially in winter. Turning off lights and appliances when they are not in use, can save you up to £20 a year on your energy bills

3. Install a smart meter

Smart meters are a great way to keep control over your energy use, largely because they allow you to see where and when your gas and electricity is being used.

4. Consider switching energy supplier

No matter how happy you are with your current energy supplier, they may not be providing you with the best deals, especially if you've let a fixed-rate contract expire without arranging a new one. If you haven't browsed any alternative tariffs lately, then you may not be aware that there are better options out there.

One user, named GrumpyTucker, wrote: “Not a good change. Looking at the scale, I'd probably get 3-5 entries. Probably just not going to bother even trying to reduce usage if there's no benefit like money off the bill, and the number of entries will be so low anyway.”

Another user, Carbon Cutter, said: “I did my sums and it’s clear that I won’t bothering with the new version of PowerMove. I can regularly hit 5-6% use 4-7 pm, but I’m not going to get as far down as 2% use 5-7 pm, so I won’t get the £10 ‘energy bill credit’, I’ll just be in the draw.

“But you only have to do a few simple calculations to show that it’s just not worth bothering. Anyone who owns Premium Bonds and understands those prize draws will also understand how the odds work.”

Consumer rights expert Martyn James said: “Energy firms like Ovo are going to have to work a lot harder to encourage people to reduce peak time energy use, given that the already rather stingy price cuts have been replaced by an even meaner prize draw.

“The problem with removing incentives like this is people simply give up on energy efficiency, which is a big mistake, given the current levels in volatility in the market.”

How does the prize draw work?

Each month, customers who are signed up to Power Move and use 15% or less of their total electricity during peak times will earn entries into that month’s prize draw.

The number of prize draw entries each customer will get depends on how much electricity they use during peak times. The lower your home’s peak time electricity use, the more entries you’ll earn.

For example, 1% usage during peak hours equals 15 entries - but this is an almost impossible target.

Someone with 12% would get four entries and 13% would get three entries.

How to save on your energy bills

SWITCHING energy providers can sound like a hassle - but fortunately it's pretty straight forward to change supplier - and save lots of cash.

Shop around - If you're on an SVT deal you are likely throwing away up to £250 a year. Use a comparion site such as MoneySuperMarket.com, uSwitch or EnergyHelpline.com to see what deals are available to you.

The cheapest deals are usually found online and are fixed deals - meaning you'll pay a fixed amount usually for 12 months.

Switch - When you've found one, all you have to do is contact the new supplier.

It helps to have the following information - which you can find on your bill - to hand to give the new supplier.

Your postcode
Name of your existing supplier
Name of your existing deal and how much you payAn up-to-date meter reading

It will then notify your current supplier and begin the switch.

It should take no longer than three weeks to complete the switch and your supply won't be interrupted in that time.

Prizes include a year’s free energy up to a maximum of £2,000. If you win, the money will be added to your account as a credit each month, rather than given as a lump sum. So if you leave Ovo within the year, you won’t get 100% of the money.

For February – with the draw taking place in March – there are also 125 prizes of £50 and 17,900 of £2.

Power Move is only available to Ovo customers with a non-prepay smart meter for electricity that provides half-hourly readings.

An OVO spokesperson said: “Power Move was created to reward our customers for using energy at times when there’s more renewable energy powering the grid.

“After listening to our customers, we’re making changes to Power Move and rolling it out to more customers than ever before. This further supports our mission to make energy better for our people and the planet.”