Is EHU metering a good investment?

I suppose staying in France these days and often using ACSI sites, it’s inclusive anyway. Well at least we have never been required to stay within a limit. Thinking about it, at non ACSI sites we have never been asked, they have just assumed we wanted it. I guess you would have to ask if you didn’t, or it would appear on your bill. I suspect that if the option was ever offered here the same assumption would be made, as in most cases it would be wanted.

"The higher the kWh cost, the greater the proportion of the pitch fee. Metering allows the return of that ability to price the pitch on merit, not energy cost. As prices rise so metering becomes not just a good investment, but critical in ensuring profitability can be balanced with marketability."

along with the fairness element, this para is the nub of where things are heading for CAMC...

The inclusive power element of the pitch price leads to a total that breaches some members' budgets.

with pricing as it is, the club has no way of stopping those prices racing away into the stratosphere given the wrong circumstances.

Some might still continue to 'pay what is necessary' but there has to be a proportion of members who are close to (or have already reached) their own 'limit'.

lots of talk about fully booked sites for next year but time will actually tell as, even with the change inT/C, there's plenty of time to cancel if things continue in the current direction.

so my thoughts are that I'd be happy for the club to use metering or a non EHU option to take the sting out of headline prices.

is either a good investment? One is expensive, one is cheap.

the expensive one would allow members to use some power as opposed to the other option which is no power.

either might have the return of keeping some members on side for a while longer.

only time will tell whether it is (or would have been) 'a good investment'.

Here is the rub of metering. The majority of users (Club Members) won't see any real benefit from the vast cost of installing meters because they are still going to be paying for a pitch and electricity on top of that. So the difference is unlikely to be more than a few pence either way. Any saving in pitch fees due to a reduction because you are paying for electricity separately will disappear within a year or two as inflation  increases site fees to what they were before they installed meters. This will bring a new wave of complaints that Club sites are too expensive. 

A more sensible approach to this would be for the Club to survey members asking what they prefer, do they want to have meters or continue with inclusive prices. What the Club could also do is to set aside two pitches per site designated as non electric pitches (with bollards disabled) to judge if there really was a real demand for for non electric pitches. Having gathered all this information they would be in a much better position to judge the need. 

David

The inclusive power element of the pitch price leads to a total that breaches some members' budgets.

So? This isn't a charity, harsh to some but true, we're not talking about something needed to sustain basic needs, we're talking about using a campsite for people who have the means to buy, tax, service and maintain a caravan/MH. If club prices are not within what they want to pay then as you often post there are lots of cheaper unnamed and just as good sites out for them to use. What is it with wanting a club site? There are either cheaper just as good or there are not? If there are then why argue to use a club site, you have chosen the no more way, others can do the same?

As far your cancellation ideas yes they might and that might have been a valid reasoning before deposits but with paying 20% upfront now it cannot be as valid, if at all?

Yes +1

I did post upthread that people who actually use club sites should be the ones who should decide (and they do now by actually choosing them instead of others) or at least be the ones who get to get some input into any changes.

Sounds a sensible summing up to be honest. 

Allowing two non hook up pitches won’t attract many though. The Club wouldn’t discount those pitches enough for the likes of us, particularly on a Site with facilities, where the likely saving might only be around £3-5 per night. A decent enough saving if on site for a long stay, but there are far better value for money stays if you look. 

I really do think this year will be make or break Membership year for us. It all hinges on how many CLs we will use. At the moment, we only pay in excess of £20 per night in very exceptional circumstances, usually for a special event. This year, our two longest tours have been well below an average of £15 per night, and we haven’t struggled in the warmer months without a hook up. 

We have a van on a seasonal pitch in Suffolk.  The site has around 90 pitches, of which 40 are March-October seasonals.

The tourers get a pitch inclusive of electricity, but the seasonals are metered.  We were a bit worried about usage when we took the pitch earlier this year, but it has worked well for us.

A trip to reception gave us a card loaded with £40 credit which loaded to the bollard in a few seconds and gave instant reading of remaining units.  After 40 nights on site our credit was almost used so we added a further £50 to see us through to the end of the season.

On our final day, the remaining credit of 152 units was easily loaded back on to the card to use next year.  We calculated that the electricity cost of 73 nights on site this year was £63, and that included using the Alde heating in April and October. 

K&S

It would need it seems a complete step change by this clubs decision makers ,by actually asking the full membership and not a loaded question. ?,instead of it seems at present a chosen few for their thoughts on if metering is the way forward 

"What the Club could also do is to set aside two pitches per site designated as non electric pitches (with bollards disabled) to judge if there really was a real demand for for non electric pitches."

but that's how the club already manages its 'economy' set up now....one pitch or so, stuffed away where no one would use it.

things have to be done on a fair basis to give any sort of fair results...therefore 'test' pitches have to be in places where members would normally choose to stay.

Of course it's not a charity, nor are many thousands of businesses all over the uk...however, I'm certain each of them will be looking mightily carefully at their costs and wondering how they can pass enough on to their customers without scaring them away.

you seem to think that as you're in a financially sound position then this must apply to everyone else. I'm fairly confident that there will be many members who really are feeling the pinch.

as you say....tough, it's not a charity...but I'm sure the club should be thinking of smart ways in which it can maintain its level of market place share and it's profit rate (to a degree) but without alienating those who've been loyal for years, and it certainly will be some of those on pensions who will be looking very closely at there ongoing cost commitments.

whilst the club thinks its looking to attract new, younger members, we all know where the core demographic is.

BTW, near TC or not, loads of time (months) for members to decide whether that school holiday fortnight away is still doable (cancel within 21 days and deposit returned)...much water under the financial bridge before then.

as I said, time will tell...