what to do next ?

mardatha

Been trying to get the OH into this MS thing but not working. We are bickering about Elect now - following advice on here, I contacted Scottish Power to ask to switch to their online tariff. We are currently on quarterly billing and paying when we get the bill.The DD they quoted was higher than we already pay, although according to MSE thinking, we are on the highest tariff and the most expensive cost per unit.
So the OH is crowing and sniggering that we arent as clever as we all think we are ont his forum. Can anybody explain how a lower price results in a higher monthly payment ? :mad: and what, if anything, I should do next? (Apart from divorce him)

SwanJon

Remember that the DD is an avberage amount for the year, so it is quite possible for 3 months to be more than a quarterly bill in summer, but is likely to be less in winter.
Give them regular accurate readings, and that should mean you only pay for what you use.

As to OH, show in the pence per kWh and let him do the maths.

jd87

Yeah when you pay by direct debit, the company tries to calculate it so that you pay the same amount all year round. In the summer you are paying "too much", but in the winter when you are using more energy, the amount you pay doesn't have to go up. That's why it looks like the cost has gone up, it is to take into account that you are paying for some of your high winter usage in advance. It's a good thing! It means you don't get hit by higher bills when money is tight around xmas. Explain it to the OH like that and he might see the light.

Cardew

mardatha wrote: »

and what, if anything, I should do next? (Apart from divorce him)

Why rule out divorce? keep all options open!

Your DD payment is not a reflection of your annual costs.

If you use xxxx kWh electricity, all that matters is the size of your annual bill; and an on-line tariff paying by DD will cost you less than a quarterly standard tariff.

mardatha

He says no, because we use coal for heating; and that last year our winter bill was only £20 higher than the summer ones, and that's down to light bulbs. I think yer right. Divorce is an option .... I do hate a smartass !

jd87

mardatha wrote: »

He says no, because we use coal for heating; and that last year our winter bill was only £20 higher than the summer ones, and that's down to light bulbs. I think yer right. Divorce is an option .... I do hate a smartass !

In that case you need to call the energy company up and explain that you don't expect your bills to be much higher in the winter and could they reduce the direct debit amount to what you think it should be.

mardatha

well that's worth a try, thank you.