Community Power Project for Lawrence Weston - Terms and Conditions

These terms and conditions (the Terms) apply to the ‘Community Power Project’ and are supplemental to, and do not replace, our Core Energy Supply Terms and Conditions (Core Terms) or any other terms which may apply to your OVO plan. References to ‘OVO’ or ‘We’ below are to OVO Energy Limited.

The Community Power Project is a 4 month trial we’re running in Lawrence Weston (BS11 postcodes) (the ‘Trial’) which aims to connect renewable generators to the people that live nearby. It’ll reward participating customers with Community Power Credit (“Credit”) every time they use the cleaner, greener energy generated from Lawrence Weston’s wind turbine (“Windy Days”). The Trial will run from 2nd April 2024 and will end on or around 2nd August 2024.  As we are trialling the Community Power Project, the Trial is limited to the first 300 people who sign up. For more information including how to sign up for this Trial, please see ovoenergy.com/community-power-project for full details.  

We’d love to get your ongoing feedback on the Trial so we can make future projects even better, so you may be contacted by our third party agencies to get your thoughts (see Section 8).

To take part in the Trial, you’ll need to have (the Eligibility Criteria):

• OVO as your electricity provider
• An address in the BS11 postcode area
• A communicating smart electricity meter (if you haven’t got a smart meter, you can find out more about getting one here)
• Consented to your smart meter sending OVO half-hourly readings (you can do this when you sign up if you haven’t already)
• An active/valid email address and mobile phone number that you agree to let us use to communicate with you during the Trial.

Unfortunately there are some types of credit and single rate smart meters that won’t work with the Trial. There may also be other reasons why you may not be able to participate, due to your meter set up. If this is the case we’ll let you know.

If at any time you fail to meet the Eligibility Criteria then we reserve the right to end your participation in the Trial and you won’t receive any further Credits.

Windy Days are an opportunity to be rewarded for using electricity when there’s lots of locally generated renewable electricity available. We’ll text you to let you know when Windy Days are going to be. But, you don’t have to do anything different to your normal routine if you don’t want to, you’ll still get a Credit for the electricity you use.

If you use more electricity than normal, it’s possible you might end up spending more than normal, even after your Credit has been paid.

As the Trial is entirely dependent on the weather we can’t guarantee that a certain number or minimum number of Windy Days will occur:

• We’ll text you when there’s going to be a Windy Day, up to 24 hours in advance
• The text will tell you the date of the Windy Day. A Windy Day lasts 24 hours from midnight to midnight
• The electricity you use on a Windy Day will be rewarded with a Credit.

We’ll credit you differently depending on whether you’re a Credit or Pay As You Go customer.

For Credit customers:

• The electricity you use on a Windy Day is recorded by your smart meter.
• When the Windy Day finishes, we’ll collect data from your smart meter to tell us how much electricity you’ve used.
• We multiply the number of units (kWhs) of electricity you used on the Windy Day by our Credit rate.
• We’ll pay the Credit into your energy account within 14 days and you’ll see the credits on a subsequent bill.

For Pay As You Go customers:

• In advance of a Windy Day, we’ll credit your smart meter with a Credit based on your estimated consumption for the event.
• All the electricity you use on a Windy Day is recorded by your smart meter.
• When the Windy Day finishes, we’ll collect data from your smart meter to tell us how much electricity you have used.
• Every two weeks we’ll calculate exactly how much electricity you’ve used on Windy Days and if you’re due any additional Credit, we’ll add this to the next Windy Day event. If we’ve paid you too much Credit then we won’t reclaim it, it is yours to keep.

Credits are set at a base rate of 15p for the duration of the Trial. This means that for every unit (kWh) of electricity that you use on a Windy Day you’ll receive at least 15p Credit towards the cost of the electricity you've used that day. You don’t have to use a full unit of electricity, we’ll reward you for part units too.

Each month the Credit you receive will vary, depending on:

• The number of Windy Day Events that occur, and;
• The amount of electricity you use on Windy Days.

If your smart meter stops communicating with us, we’ll continue to credit you for Windy Days, using your estimated consumption.

How much will I earn?

We all use different amounts of electricity within our homes, so it’s difficult to know exactly how much you’ll earn. Your Credit is directly linked to how much electricity you use on a Windy Day.

How will the Credit be paid to me?

If you’re a credit customer, the Credit is paid directly to your electricity account. You’ll be credited monthly for any Windy Days in the previous month. For example, you’ll receive a Credit in April for Windy Days in March.

If you pay by Direct Debit, the Direct Debit amount you pay per month will not change, the Credit will show as a separate line item on your bill.

If your account is in debt, any Credit will be used towards what’s owed. There is no cash alternative and you won’t be able to withdraw the Credit from your energy account to your bank account.

Community Power Project is designed for domestic use only. If we reasonably believe that you are using electricity other than for domestic use or using unusually excessive amounts of electricity or we suspect fraud then we reserve the right to end your participation in the Trial and stop the payment of Credits to you.

You can opt out of Community Power Project at any time by calling 0333 034 1575. If you opt out you’ll stop receiving Windy Day messages and will no longer be eligible for any further Credit. You’ll be credited for any Windy Days up until the point of opting out.

If you switch away 

You’re free to switch away from OVO at any time (unless you owe us money, in which case we may stop your switch until the money is paid). If you switch away at any point during the Trial, you’ll be credited for any Windy Days up until the point of switching. You’ll find further information about switching away from OVO in our Core Terms.

If you move home 

If you move home you’ll no longer be able to participate. You’ll be credited for any Windy Days up until the date you move out of your property.

When we can terminate your participation in the Project

If you don’t comply with these Terms or our Core Terms (including where you don’t pay your bills) or if you no longer meet our Eligibility Criteria, we reserve the right to end your participation in the Trial. This would happen with immediate effect and you’ll no longer be eligible for further Credit. You’ll be credited for any Windy Days up until the date we terminate your participation in the Trial.

We can make changes to these Terms and the Project at any time. These changes may include, but are not limited to, changing the Credit amount payable, amending or withdrawing the Project, or reducing the time the Project runs for. Where we make any changes that are to your detriment, we’ll give you reasonable notice. We reserve the right to refuse access to the Project at our sole discretion, even where you meet the Eligibility Criteria.

If you have any questions about the Project, please get in touch with us via 0333 034 1575.

By signing up to the Project you’re agreeing to receive communications related to our Community Power Project. It’s your responsibility to make sure your phone number and email address are kept up to date in order to receive our texts and emails. If you need to change the email address or phone number that we use for the Project, you’ll need to contact us on 0333 034 1575.

You can opt out of receiving these communications at any time but you won’t be able to continue participating in the Project if you do opt out.

We may share your contact details (name and email address) with our trusted third-party research agency partners, as mentioned in our Privacy Policy. This is so they can contact you for feedback on your experience of the Project. Your data won’t be used for marketing purposes, unless you’ve opted in to receive marketing from us.

We won’t be liable for any loss or damage you may suffer as a result of your participation in the Project, where such loss or damage cannot be excluded by law. 

These Terms are governed by English Law and any dispute arising in relation to these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts.

Last updated: February 2024