ORC Posted September 17, 2015 Report Share Posted September 17, 2015 HI GuysWas looking at rentals today and I noticed that has to all be setup yourself.There are companies like Direct Connect that do those things for you.Is it worth letting a company handle it for you at the risk of not getting the best price and being spammed later.If you do do it yourself, do you know how to get the electricity, gas and pay tv setup (assuming the apartment has all the plugs for television, built in gas etc)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanniewagnie Posted September 17, 2015 Report Share Posted September 17, 2015 It is the easiest thing and no need to stress about it. The estate agent will give you the phone numbers and you simply phone them the morning when you move in. All is done telephonically, easy, no fuss. The service providers will depend on where you stay. You just need to make sure the gass is 'turned on' outside (usually at the carport) and our gas hotwater system had to be lit - took me a while to figure it all out! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AFreshStart Posted September 17, 2015 Report Share Posted September 17, 2015 (edited) ORC,Direct Connect don't really have your best interest at heart. You are better sourcing the best deal you can yourself. Bare in mind that many companies that offer both Gas & Electricity will give you better rates if you bundle them together. So for example we are with Origin for Gas & Electricity, bundling both gives us 15% of the standard electricity bill and 12% off for gas than having either offering.To set it up is just a quick call, done. They meter your reading and then you start paying from the next cycle. It's not like South Africa where they cut off the gas or electricity, for the most part it remains operational and the previous supplier picks up the cost while you transition to your new supplier, if you switch suppliers you might be asked to pay it for both up until the switch, but if you are moving into the new place you usually don't.Pay TV, well that depends, you're unit would have to have had Foxtel installed and the points for that service. Many, like myself go with FetchTV and again bundle it with Optus for home line, ADSL and mobile, further getting discounts as it uses ADSL to stream.Australia also has 5 major FREE to AIR channels with multiple channels from each provider, I think we have a bout 17 and there are some great things to watch on there as well, new series, documentaries (SBS is great for that) etc.CheersMatt Edited September 17, 2015 by AFreshStart 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OubaasDik Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 To clarify - if you move into a house, the water heater (geyser) will be switched off when the previous tenant moves out and you will have to get it started again, which is not difficult, but you have to know about it. Not a great hardship in Perth in midsummer. I have never moved into a flat officially, so I don't know.Personally, unlike Matt, I seldom find anything I feel worth watching on any of the 17 free to air channels, and can't be arsed to get Paid-for TV, so I spend a lot of time with computers, Kindles, magazines and so on. My least favourite channel is SBS - Soccer, Bloody Soccer as it's called. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DXB2OZ Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 We set up utilities ourselves remotely with almost no hassle.By contrast, I tried to transfer corporate utilities using one of those third party provider and they managed to transfer a corporate electricity bill into my personal name!! Wouldn't suggest using them.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudlySouthAfricanInPerth Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 Its really easy to do yourself. We used Direct Connect as our rental agent said it was easy but I think they messed it up and I ended up having to call the gas company direct anyway, so just give them a ring and it takes less than ten minutes to set up each account. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blung Posted September 19, 2015 Report Share Posted September 19, 2015 We had an issue with this as we moved in on a Friday afternoon. They would not reconnect until Tuesday and required an extra same day connection fee to get it setup on Monday as they don't do connections on weekends. Not the end of the world but certainly not quick and simple in every case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TeeTMI Posted September 20, 2015 Report Share Posted September 20, 2015 I have always dealt with the various utility providers directly and found them all very efficient.We use Powershop for Electricity. If you are looking at that for an option drop me a message as I can introduce you and you (and I) get a $75 credit in your first month.The is no set contract so you can change provider if the price gets better elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardH Posted September 20, 2015 Report Share Posted September 20, 2015 There are companies like Direct Connect that do those things for you.Is it worth letting a company handle it for you at the risk of not getting the best price and being spammed later.If you do do it yourself, do you know how to get the electricity, gas and pay tv setup (assuming the apartment has all the plugs for television, built in gas etc)?Ha ha! You are still scarred from calling SA call centres It's far different in Australia most of the time. The person on the other end of the line can speak english (for the most part), can spell your name and WILL usually do what you are asking them to do. The records are up to date and they will find a record of your property utilities etc. When they say they will post the documentation or info to you in x days then they will and it WILL arrive in x days. No need for reference numbers, proof of this or that. The call centre experience in Australia is not perfect, but is a million miles better than SA. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donovan83 Posted September 21, 2015 Report Share Posted September 21, 2015 I just wanted to pop in to recommend powershop.com.au. I recently switched to them, my power costs dropped by 30%.If you do switch to Powershop, then pop me an email and I'll send you a referral. They give you and me each $75... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunnyskies Posted September 21, 2015 Report Share Posted September 21, 2015 Just make sure that when you move you not only transfer your account to your new address, but that you cancel the utilities to the old address.If the new tenant opens a new account the old account will be cancelled, but not everyone is that honest and they may simply keep on using electricity/gas that you will be liable for. Also make sure you get a reference number for the cancellation, as I've been told before that I haven't cancelled, when I know I have.With regard to TV, I wouldn't bother with Fetch, Stan, T-Box or Foxtel, not much to watch and overpriced for the rubbish you do get. We have Netflix and that has been great at a very reasonable price for when we want to overdose on a complete season of an American show. When I want to watch a free to air TV program I generally just pick it up on the TV app where you can pick up most of the catch up TV, and if you want to watch something other than soccer on SBS the app has a great variety of documentaries and non-American films, as well as a fair amount of trashy TV (like Bear Gryll's version of Survivor - put 14 women on one island and 14 men on anther island, give them nothing but some cameras to film the impending disaster and a few empty jerry cans, and then come and pick them up 6 weeks later and about half the size they were before, no voting off, no silly games, pure survival was tough enough - makes you realise how fake the Survivor franchise is). I also worked out that you can stream ABC live on their iView app, it was great as the great Abbott/Turnbull saga unfolded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenDemo Posted June 14, 2016 Report Share Posted June 14, 2016 Hi All  Does anyone have any experience with GloBird? I am comparing AGL, Origin and GloBird for our rental. AGL seems to be a better deal than Origin at the moment (June 2016). But then @RedPanda found this comparison site (http://switchon.vic.gov.au/get-the-best-deal/compare-offers-with-victorian-energy-compare) and they suggest GloBird. Now they seem to be much cheaper than AGL, but I am trying to get some read on their reputation. You know how it is, coming from RSA, when something is cheaper, there has to be a catch... I would appreciate any input.  GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 14, 2016 Report Share Posted June 14, 2016 (edited) Hello Gen, I have not heard of Globird but we used the iselect to find the best deal. We are with Lumo which we found were cheaper than AGL for both Gas and electricity. Infact when AGL contacted us they couldn't offer us a better deal than Lumo so it is definitely worth shopping around. Also bear in mind that if you set up a direct debit with energy company they will offer a bigger discount. We get 33% off electricity and 16% off gas but again you have to take into account what they charge per KW etc and daily rate. The market seems to be very competitive and if you have a good deal with one company you can always bargain with the other. We've been with Lumo since we arrived and we are quite happy. You also might get a good deal if you have Gas with one company and electricity with another but for convenience sake we opted to have utilities with one company. Â You are bound to get sales agents for energy suppliers knocking on your door from time to time wanting you to switch. Edited June 14, 2016 by Guest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenDemo Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 Thnx ...yes I also used a comparison site. It seems we can't get Lumo in our area (or something), but I've decided to to with AGL. Powerhouse was the cheapest I could find, but they didn't offer gas. And then I went with TPG internet. It seems that you can get internet here without a working telephone line, so bear that in mind when you are looking around. Â Thnx for the advice, once again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPanda Posted June 29, 2016 Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 On 6/27/2016 at 10:44 PM, GenDemo said: And then I went with TPG internet. It seems that you can get internet here without a working telephone line, so bear that in mind when you are looking around. Â Just checking..can, or can't..? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenDemo Posted June 29, 2016 Report Share Posted June 29, 2016 "can't"Â Â sorry about that, thnx RedPanda... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riekie Posted June 30, 2016 Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 We used Utility1 - when you're new in Australia, it could be a bit daunting to try and figure out who to use for all your utilities and how to get the best value. We found it to be much of a muchness and the few $ you could maybe save by doing it yourself was not worth the hassle for us at that point. Remember you could always contact your utility providers later and ask for a discounted rate either to match another rate you became aware of or simply because you want a lower rate. We've done that a few times and we always got a better deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPanda Posted June 30, 2016 Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 5 hours ago, Riekie said:  Remember you could always contact your utility providers later and ask for a discounted rate either to match another rate you became aware of or simply because you want a lower rate. We've done that a few times and we always got a better deal.  What? These Australians are crazy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riekie Posted June 30, 2016 Report Share Posted June 30, 2016 25 minutes ago, RedPanda said:  What? These Australians are crazy  They don't want to lose your business, so if you hint that you're looking elsewhere, they'd rather keep you at a lower rate than lose you to the competition.  Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenDemo Posted July 1, 2016 Report Share Posted July 1, 2016 someone on twitter replied to a tweet of mine and said that he'd never use AGL again. I asked him why but he didn't respond.  So TPG set up our phone & internet line today....but I have NO idea where the line comes into the house.....might have to get a TPG technician out, which is going to cost me a further $60.... *sigh* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiermelk Posted July 2, 2016 Report Share Posted July 2, 2016 On 6/29/2016 at 10:13 PM, RedPanda said:  Just checking..can, or can't..?  You do get "naked" DSL here but it still requires a "working" phone line but it won`t be working for phone calls it`s just setup for DSL. With this however it`s said that if you do have phone service there is some law that requires them to fix the line in a certain time if it goes faulty, but the same law does not apply to a naked DSL service.  Then you also get NBN and cable (Optus or Telstra) internet that has nothing to do with your phone line.  23 hours ago, GenDemo said: So TPG set up our phone & internet line today....but I have NO idea where the line comes into the house.....might have to get a TPG technician out, which is going to cost me a further $60.... *sigh*  So you do not have a phone point/socket?  Sounds somewhat similar to my experience with our last move, the house (OLD) had a phone point but no dial tone on the line.  We planned to move our TPG DSL service to the new address, eventually TPG sent out a technician that had the story that he does not know where the line comes into the house and they had to log a request with Telstra, ie. extra costs and more long delays.  Luckily there was a Telstra cable connection in the house so I got that enabled and cancelled the ADSL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GenDemo Posted July 2, 2016 Report Share Posted July 2, 2016 Yes I am aware of the naked DSL (you have it in RSA as well), but that is really expensive. Yeah I can't wait for the fibre to get here... Â No, I don't. So I phoned TPG yesterday, and apparently the technician saw that there was no phone line into the house. He tried to contact me, but for some reason the contact number they had for me on the system was incorrect. Anyway, they escalated it to their technical dept and said that someone will contact me within 24 hours. I'll have to wait to speak to them and find out what is going on. No doubt they'll need to send someone out to the house. I just hope that is it is a bit of a balls up, that I can cancel my contract without any penalties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPanda Posted July 3, 2016 Report Share Posted July 3, 2016 They sms'ed us this morning saying that a technician will come out on the 5th... so we'll see what happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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