Dual fuel

mr2nut

Hi guys,

Ok, i've been in my house with my g/f (just the two of us) for just over a year now and have noticed npower seem to be getting cheeky with bills. It was first set up for estimates for £30 gas and £31 electricity.

It was well under this for the first 6 months and we even had quite a bit of money spare each month that was stored with them, but now all of a sudden we get slapped with a £155 bill to reduce our monthly rates when I know for a fact we haven't changed the way anything works. Infact, we have recently got new double glazing windows too.

I know for a fact they are overestimating and ripping me off like many other people here. What i'm after, if possible, is a company that doesn't have a million different tarrifs confusing you and just says how much they charge per unit, simple as that. I'd also like to be able to take my own meter readings to make sure they aren't been sneaky and to send these readings to them online each month.

What would you recommend?


Thanks!

jimexbox

When you start living in a new property, especially for the first time your monthly DD payments are a best guess until your energy supplier has a history of your usage to base them against.

The whole point of paying by DD is that by your spring bill which should be landing in your inbox or through your letter box about now is that your DD account shows zero. If you have a surplus, they will reduce your monthly payments. If you are in debit, your payments will rise to pay off your debt and cover your increased usage.

mr2nut

I appreciate this, but i'd rather not give them an interest free loan all the time and just pay what I owe for the month. I've just had a look at ebico and they look great. Do they just take what you owe each month so you don't have none of this faffing about with "you owe me, now I owe you" nonsense?

Magentasue

How many kwh of each fuel have you actually (not estimates) used in the year you've been in the house? Look at how much you pay per kwh (include any standing charges) and calculate your annual bill - divide by 12 -what do you get?

mr2nut

Magentasue wrote: »

How many kwh of each fuel have you actually (not estimates) used in the year you've been in the house? Look at how much you pay per kwh (include any standing charges) and calculate your annual bill - divide by 12 -what do you get?

I've not got the bills to hand, but in 6 months I used 1680kwh of electricity and 6500kwh gas and that was the winter months so I guess used a bit more.

Magentasue

mr2nut wrote: »

I've not got the bills to hand, but in 6 months I used 1680kwh of electricity and 6500kwh gas and that was the winter months so I guess used a bit more.

You would know how much more electricity you use in winter - if you don't have a tumble drier, electric heaters etc, it might not be much more. So say 3000kwh electricity a year. At 11p per kwh (you may pay more or less), that's about £330 a year or £30 a month.

Gas more difficult. Say 10000kwh a year at 4p (again, you may pay less), that's about £33 a month.

So ... calculate using your tariff, take accurate readings and submit to your supplier. You need to pay enough to cover your use, but if they're estimating too high, you need to let them know.

nibs

i was with southern electric/gas for 3 years and was paying £110 per month.
I used a comparison site and Npower came out cheaper at £89 per month so i swithched. A year down the line I have just recieved my new dd payments of £208 per month :eek:. My usage hasn't changed although i know how gas prices have rocketed, but even so...........:mad: