New rented accomodation sorting out gas, electric and water

jojo69_2

Hello,
On Tuesday myself and 7 other students are moving into out house for the next year. We are rented from a letting agent and we have to sort out all the bills ourselves. We would like to sort everything out so the payments are not linked to one persons bank account i.e. direct debit as this would be rather expensive for one person. So the questions are as followed:

1) Can we set up a household account with a company and when we get a bill monthly or quarterly we can pop down to the post office and pay cash?
2) What supplier would be best for us. I understand that some companies offer tarrifs would this be appropriate for 8 people as the useage would be unadvoidably high. We do try to save though being poor students
3) If we moved in on Tuesday how long would it take to get everything switched on. would someone have to come out and take a reading and therefore would take a few days or can it be done instantly over the phone
4) Who is good to go for?
5) any other advice or words of guidance.

Any relevant input would be ace. I've never had to do anything like this so want to avoid any potential pot holes.

Thanks guys :money:

Ducks_Bum

You are better going for an online price but if you're not going to be in for a year be careful of any yearly discounts that are included in the price (ie Npower offer you 80 quid per year but I don't think you'll be in the property long enough to claim it thus making the quote 80 quid more)

1) Can we set up a household account with a company and when we get a bill monthly or quarterly we can pop down to the post office and pay cash?

You'll only get a bill quarterly but you'll be able to arrange a payment scheme where you pay at a paypoint or post office but this isn't as cheap as direct debit. However direct debit isn't ideal as a student, messing finances with friends can get messy (especially after you've lived on top of each other- sometimes literally, for a year!). You could do worse than taking 20 quid off everybody per month and paying that on a certain date, ie the 1st. It might cover you, it might not but when you get a bill every 3 months it'll certainly help as you'll have already paid a chunk off and you can just divide the rest up by 7.

2) What supplier would be best for us. I understand that some companies offer tarrifs would this be appropriate for 8 people as the useage would be unadvoidably high. We do try to save though being poor students

Do a quote through a comparison website and then double check it through the company's website.
The prices will be going up during the time you're in the property so consider a fix deal till mid 2009 which are available from Eon and Scottish Power. Sign up online (and through quidco if you have it- just don't tell the others!)
You are better going for an online price but if you're not going to be in for a year be careful of any yearly discounts that are included in the price (ie Npower offer you 80 quid per year but I don't think you'll be in the property long enough to claim it thus making the quote 80 quid more)

3) If we moved in on Tuesday how long would it take to get everything switched on. would someone have to come out and take a reading and therefore would take a few days or can it be done instantly over the phone

Everything should be switched on already, ring the letting agency before you move to check it has been. If it hasn't then ring the existing supplier to sort it out. Be sure you take a reading when you move in and forward it to your existing supplier. Keep a note of it.

4) Who is good to go for?

None of them! They're all bleeding the country dry! However, if you do a comparison online on a few comparison sites you'll get a good idea who is the best for your circumstances. Personally I'd stayaway from British Gas.

5) any other advice or words of guidance

yeah. go out and get blind drunk and have plenty of sex with fellow loose students! Enjoy every minute of it and remember that the social life is twice as important as any exam! :beer::beer::beer:

Cardew

Good advice above.

As said. keeping a track of all meter readings is most important. You may well get Estimated readings on your quarterly bills. Check those against your meter and if they are too low, ensure that the company have the new readings and send you a revised bill.

Do not assume that the readings you send them(if on an internet account) will be the ones they use - the 'computer' sometimes rejects customer readings.

Remember that the bills for this next quarter will be much much lower than for the winter quarters.

Unless you get the 'ground rules' sorted out at the beginning, energy/water bills always have potential for dispute.
e.g.
Someone uses an electric heater in their room all the time.

Joe lives there all the time, John is hardly ever there as he stays at his girlfriend's digs

What happens if someone moves out after a few months?

Personally I would try to get everyone to put £250 into this 'Utility Fund account' at the beginning, rather that try to collect £20 each month.