Scottish Power - rising bills, but why?

RowaN

I am supposidly on a fixed price tarriff with Scottish Power for gas and electricity (Product: Fixed Price Energy online). I was happily paying £38 per month, and was being told I was in credit for months on end. All this time I was giving them regular meter readings so I was confident that I was infact in credit. However, they recently demanded a lump sum of £131 and simultaneously increased my payments from £38 to £43 per month.

This all seems a bit fishy to me. According to the graph below, I used no electricity between mid-December and mid-February. TV/microwave/fridge/lights are sucking electricity all year round, so I'm not sure what thats about. I haven't turned my central heating on in months and months, because its been so warm. So I don't know what is causing the spike you see in the graphs either.
Also confusing is that the first chart below shows that in 80 days I used almost the same amount of gas as I did in 5 days (1006 vs 876 kWh). Doesn't seem likely.

Moneysupermarket recommends that I switch back to Npower, who I was with previously. (Estimated Annual Saving: £224 + £30 cashback). The reason I switched away from Npower in the first place was so that I could secure a fixed price tariff at a time when prices were rising. Now I don't know what to do.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

jenny2009

Your figures might not be accurate.

It is the meter readings and dates we need, not what you think you used.
Also it is the tariff that is fixed not your direct debit. If you use 2000 units of electricity at say 10p per unit in a quarter that will cost you £200. If you then use 3000 units in a quarter you will pay £300 and if you have only paid £400 you owe £100.

All previous figures are for illustration purposes only.

Jenny

RowaN

Thanks Jenny. Here are the readings I have given them:

20/12/08 - Readings given:
Electricity: 31821
Gas: 4109

21/03/09 - Readings given:
Electricity: 31509
Gas: 4196

06/05/09 - Readings given:
Electricity: 31790
Gas: 4224

basmic

Am I missing something here?

Your electricity usage for 20/12/2008 is 31821 - which then goes down (!) to 31790 in 06/05/2009.

Do you have any earlier meter readings?

RowaN

I was also a bit puzzled by that, but I remember at the time I went back down to do the reading again and got the same result. Its an old dial based system which is a bit tricky to read but I followed the advice on how to read them and these were the numbers I got.

staffie1

I'd get them to check your electric meter if I were you...

basmic

Here is minor experiment, as well as a way of getting you to give us today's meter readings.

Take a photo of both the meters, make sure you can make the numbers, dial, pointers etc out. Now for each meter tell us what you think the reading is, including the red numbers.

Then post the pictures with what you think each reading is here.

This could be interesting, and perhaps helpful for yourself.

KimYeovil

If the original reading was 30821 instead of 31821 the daily averages work out sensibly.

RowaN

Oh I don't believe this, its gone up again:

"To avoid any underpayment on your account, we have revised your monthly Direct Debit payment to £59.00."

So now its gone for £38, to £43, to £59.

Scottish_Power

Hi RowaN,

Sorry to hear of your frustration with regards your monthly payment amount. As others have suggested it would appear that your reading on 20/12/08 could be inaccurate, which has thrown the calculations out from this date onwards.

If you would like me to have a look into this personally please feel free to drop me a PM with your account details. I am sure we can get to the bottom of the matter for you.

Craig @ ScottishPower

neas

Aye i believe you made a istake and its the eleccy playing catch up. The estimators try and curve fit your usage and estimate future use... if you put in a negative number then if it didnt flag it up as invalid it would've think you've given them back a ton of electricity... pushing off totals.

If you want to check everything ticky boo just find your opening meter reading and todays meter reading. Roughly work out the KWHs used over the time at SP... then pop that figure into the price comparison website... it will pop out with your yearly bill... divide/multiply etc so you get total for your time there (i.e 6 months divide it by 2 or 18 months times by 1.5)

This will give a rough but gheneral idea if what you've paid for is what you used... I think its meter reading errors... and thus your fault.