[NB]

Hi there

I will be shifting to my long term rental apartment next week in Hawthorn, Melbourne VIC 3123

How does the Utilities connections system work ?

I will need the following Utilities
Electricity
Gas
Broadband

Do I have the option of changing any of the vendors who are already providing these utilities to the apartment to the existing tenant or I can change any or all of them as per my needs ?

Any recommendations on the providers ?

Cheers

 

[kaju]

Hi there

I will be shifting to my long term rental apartment next week in Hawthorn, Melbourne VIC 3123

How does the Utilities connections system work ?

I will need the following Utilities
Electricity
Gas
Broadband

Do I have the option of changing any of the vendors who are already providing these utilities to the apartment to the existing tenant or I can change any or all of them as per my needs ?

Any recommendations on the providers ?

Cheers

You'll need to change them all to your name unless your rental contract specifically includes an arrangement with your landlord covering any services.

Try: https://compare.switchon.vic.gov.au/ but be careful to check the providers website too, as the switchon site is not always up to date.

Be aware, if choosing to use comparison-type websites for most things (from broadband to energy to health insurance and more) that the website may not show all offers or companies, and you may do better elsewhere.

The independent State-Government owned switchon site will show all your energy choices.

For Broadband, you'll need to know what type you can get - ADSL, NBN, etc. Then use at least a couple of comparison sites (google "broadband choice Hawthorn").

The cheapest may not be the best. You can browse, ask, or search (on the left) at sites like this: https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum/92

 

[chiku2006]

Hi there



I will be shifting to my long term rental apartment next week in Hawthorn, Melbourne VIC 3123



How does the Utilities connections system work ?



I will need the following Utilities

Electricity

Gas

Broadband



Do I have the option of changing any of the vendors who are already providing these utilities to the apartment to the existing tenant or I can change any or all of them as per my needs ?



Any recommendations on the providers ?



Cheers

I work for one of the major utility company in Australia, my suggestion to you will be to not to rely on third parties like Iselect and others as they will always promote those, who give them higher commission.

You will find many companies offering very higher discounts but they are based on a very high unit rate as well. So do your numbers before you decide anything. Most importantly, you can change your electricity and gas provider anytime there is no lock in period for that however, you may have a 24 months contract with an internet provider.

For internet, I would strongly recommend you to only stick big players like Telstra , Optus or IINet. Please don't choose any small ISP like TPG or anybody else they have a lot of hidden charges and when you do the numbers you will realise that you end up paying same or even more in comparison to Telstra or Optus.



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[ozbound12]

I work for one of the major utility company in Australia, my suggestion to you will be to not to rely on third parties like Iselect and others as they will always promote those, who give them higher commission.

You will find many companies offering very higher discounts but they are based on a very high unit rate as well. So do your numbers before you decide anything. Most importantly, you can change your electricity and gas provider anytime there is no lock in period for that however, you may have a 24 months contract with an internet provider.

For internet, I would strongly recommend you to only stick big players like Telstra , Optus or IINet. Please don't choose any small ISP like TPG or anybody else they have a lot of hidden charges and when you do the numbers you will realise that you end up paying same or even more in comparison to Telstra or Optus.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

LOL. TPG owns iiNet and is now one of the largest ISPs in the country. Now that it owns iiNet it is the second largest ISP in terms of subscribers after Telstra. I don't have any hidden charges with TPG so not sure what you're on about.

Some of the smaller providers are often the best ones - Aussie Broadband for example gets very good reviews for NBN. For ADSL2+ I don't think the choice of ISP really matters as much.

My main advice for internet connections is to try to get a no contract plan in case you don't like the provider and want to switch. Might be more expensive but it's still cheaper than paying penalties for early cancellation.

 

[chiku2006]

LOL. TPG owns iiNet and is now one of the largest ISPs in the country. Now that it owns iiNet it is the second largest ISP in terms of subscribers after Telstra. I don't have any hidden charges with TPG so not sure what you're on about.



Some of the smaller providers are often the best ones - Aussie Broadband for example gets very good reviews for NBN. For ADSL2+ I don't think the choice of ISP really matters as much.



My main advice for internet connections is to try to get a no contract plan in case you don't like the provider and want to switch. Might be more expensive but it's still cheaper than paying penalties for early cancellation.

If you read my comments carefully I had mentioned that Telstra optus or IINet as I wasn't sure about IINet. Companies like TPG they charge you for the modem installation etc which Telstra and Optus don't.

Everyone has their own criteria of choosing a service provider. I shared my experience from the point of best customer service and providing a resolution. I remember speaking with TPG and IINet while looking for a new ISP upon completion of my contract with Optus. TPG and IINet teams were not able to answer basic questions and that's why I decided to stay with Optus. I am paying a little extra to optus than any other small NBN provider because of good experience with their customer service team.

It's entirely up to what you want and how much would you like pay.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ozbound12]

If you read my comments carefully I had mentioned that Telstra optus or IINet as I wasn't sure about IINet. Companies like TPG they charge you for the modem installation etc which Telstra and Optus don't.

Yes and you said:

For internet, I would strongly recommend you to only stick big players like Telstra , Optus or IINet. Please don't choose any small ISP like TPG

I was just clarifying that TPG is not actually a small internet service provider.

Everyone has their own criteria of choosing a service provider. I shared my experience from the point of best customer service and providing a resolution. I remember speaking with TPG and IINet while looking for a new ISP upon completion of my contract with Optus. TPG and IINet teams were not able to answer basic questions and that's why I decided to stay with Optus. I am paying a little extra to optus than any other small NBN provider because of good experience with their customer service team.

It's entirely up to what you want and how much would you like pay.


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I don't know anything about Optus but Telstra definitely charged me a connection charge when I had cable internet with them at my previous house. These charges are fairly common. Optus may not charge them (again I don't know anything about them) but others including Telstra certainly do. The charges have nothing to do with the size of the ISP.

That's great that you like your ISP. Many people do. But I don't think the size of an ISP really matters. Often times large ISPs including Telstra, Optus and TPG outsource their call centres and if you call them, they will just tell you to restart your computer and your modem. It's fine if your connection works okay but if not, then good luck. So if anything, a smaller ISP would probably do better at providing reasonable and effective customer service.

 

[phlojo]

There are companies that set everything up for you (like direct connect). I did it all in one phone call. Electricity and gas is often the same provider, so that's easy. You'll also need water. Internet is another matter; the big question is whether there is NBN in that area. For internet it may make sense to look at bundles.

Another thing to consider when signing up for utilities: bonus points. Sometimes you can get bonus rewards points (Woolies, Flybuys, Qantas, Velocity points... whatever).