Ecotricity's Demand Flexibility Service Terms and Conditions
What is Ecotricity Demand Flexibility Service?
Ecotricity Demand Flexibility Service (“Ecotricity DFS” or the “Service”) is a free-to-use scheme offered by Ecotricity Limited (“we”, “us”, “our”). By signing up to Ecotricity DFS and taking part in “DFS Events”, you can earn rewards – credits to your Ecotricity energy account - and help to reduce pressure on the electricity grid at peak times of the day. This in turn helps to minimise the amount of fossil-fuelled generation being used across the country.
You take part in a DFS Event by using less electricity than you normally would during the event. This might mean not running energy-hungry appliances like dishwashers, washing machines and tumble dryers during these periods, not charging an electric vehicle, or changing the time you use an electric cooker.
Ecotricity DFS will start on 18th December 2023 and end on 31st March 2024, unless otherwise notified.
Please read these Terms and Conditions carefully before signing up to the Ecotricity DFS. By taking part in the Service, you agree to be bound by the below Terms and Conditions.
These Terms and Conditions are separate from the Terms and Conditions for the supply of gas and electricity that you will have with Ecotricity and will not affect your rights and obligations under those Terms and Conditions.
Please also read our Privacy Notice, which explains your data protection rights, and how we collect and use your personal data, both for Ecotricity DFS and for our energy supply services. You can find our Privacy Notice at /the-legal-stuff/privacy-policy. The Privacy Notice does not form part of any contract between you and us.
Eligibility:
To be eligible for the Service you must:
be aged 18 or over;
live in Great Britain;
be a current domestic electricity customer of Ecotricity;
have a working smart meter for your electricity supply which we are able to obtain half-hourly readings from and has successfully sent automatic meter readings for 30 days or more;
consent to us collecting half-hourly readings;
consent to us sharing your personal data with third parties (as described in the section Data and Service Providers below);
register for the Service via the link sent to the registered email on your account;
confirm that no one living at the property is vulnerable or relies on medical equipment powered by mains electricity; and
confirm that you are not participating in the delivery of balancing services or any similar service for NGESO or any Distribution Network Operator
Participation:
Participation in the Ecotricity DFS is voluntary. If you choose to sign up, taking part in DFS Events is optional. You may opt-in for each Event and choose whether to take part. You will not be penalised for opting in and not taking part in an event.
You must opt-into an event to be eligible for rewards from that event.
By participating in the Service, you confirm that you are not participating in any other demand flexibility service with another supplier or other third party (including National Grid).
If your smart meter is not working at the time of the event or you no longer live at the address which was registered with Ecotricity, we reserve the right to remove you from the Service.
You must continue to meet the eligibility criteria and these Terms and Conditions to maintain your eligibility for the Service.
By entering the Service, you are confirming that all information you have provided to Ecotricity is up to date and accurate.
If you provide any fraudulent or incorrect information or data throughout the Service or if Ecotricity has reasonable grounds to believe you have breached these Terms and Conditions, Ecotricity reserves the right to disqualify them from the Service.
Reward:
As a participant you will receive credit against your Ecotricity energy bill as a reward for your involvement in each event
You will be paid for each half hour of the DFS Event that you reduce your electricity consumption as compared to your “baseline” consumption for the same time period.
The baseline is calculated by looking at 10 days of recent electricity smart meter history, excluding days where a DFS Event has taken place, to calculate your average electricity consumption at the time of the event.
To be eligible for a reward for a particular energy-saving session, you must opt-in (via a link in the email we will send to you) and then reduce your electricity consumption during the notified time period, compared to your baseline.
After the DFS Event, we will let you know via email of the energy reductions you achieved during the event.
We will calculate the reward amount due to you and the reward will be credited directly into your Ecotricity energy account within 30 days of the event.
The value of the reward is subject to change for each event, based on the final DFS Event price (in £ per kWh) decided by National Grid ESO, the Electricity System Operator for Great Britain.
Your account credit will be calculated as: the reduction in your electricity consumption in a half-hour period during the DFS (kWh) * the event price (£/kWh) * 85% (the other 15% is used to cover our costs of providing the Ecotricity DFS).
We will not be able to pay a reward if your smart meter does not record and successfully transmit half hourly electricity consumption data for the baseline period for a particular DFS Event.
If we have received half hourly electricity consumption data for the baseline period but cannot retrieve your meter half-hourly readings to calculate usage during the DFS Event itself, we may, at our discretion, pay you a reward based on the average reduction for all Service participants during that DFS Event.
Data and service providers:
Ecotricity DFS is administered on our behalf by Solo Energy Limited (“Solo”), a company incorporated in Scotland with registered number SC487193, with its registered office at 2nd Floor, 48 St Vincent Street, Glasgow, G2 5TS.
In providing the Service, Ecotricity and Solo will comply with all applicable data protection and privacy laws and regulations.
Ecotricity’s privacy policy (which can be found on our website at /the-legal-stuff/privacy-policy) will apply to all data collected for Ecotricity’s use and in connection with the Service.
Data and personal information collected for the Service will be used solely for the purposes of the Service and handled with care to protect sensitive customer information.
We may share your email address, Meter Point Administration Number (your “MPAN”, shown on your electricity bill), half-hourly metered energy consumption, energy export, usage information and other details relating to your participation in the Ecotricity DFS with National Grid ESO, and with our service provider Solo and its authorised data sub processor, N3rgy Limited (N3rgy), a company incorporated in England and Wales with company number 11203504 whose registered office is at 4 Ovington Drive, Fleet, United Kingdom, GU51 1DF).
Providing the service includes: registering you as a participant in the Service and calculating reward payments. Your half-hourly metered consumption and export data from the electricity supply start date associated with your MPAN will be processed by Solo and N3rgy by interfacing with the national smart meter systems in accordance with the Smart Energy Code (https://smartenergycodecompany.co.uk/).
Some of the information we need to share to provide the Service is personal information for the purposes of the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR. By signing up to the Service and opting into a DFS Event, you consent to us sharing your personal information as described in this section.
General Terms:
Ecotricity reserves the right to terminate or withdraw the Service and/or amend these Terms and Conditions without prior notice. Any changes will be updated on our website.
The Service will run on an invitation-only basis. We will invite eligible customers – those who have a smart meter with half-hourly data collection capabilities and who have signed up to receive marketing information - to take part.
We will not be liable to reimburse any expenses you may incur as a result of participating in the Service or any DFS Event.
By opting-in to the Ecotricity Demand Flexibility Service, you acknowledge that you have read and understood these Terms and Conditions and agree to comply with them. Failure to comply with these Terms and Conditions may result in your being deregistered from the Service.