Do quarterly bills still exist?

frugallass

Scottish Power insist that we no longer have the option to pay our power bills on a quarterly 'by cheque' basis and instead insist on us paying them a set amount each month (like a direct debit but paid by cash / cheque).

We put so much money away each month and then pay the bill when it comes in - we do not believe in paying these people for something which we haven't yet used plus the money would be earning interest in their account rather than ours if we paid up front.

Funnily enough when we first moved in (May 09) they wanted £40 a month, it's now been increased to £43.50 a month but we're totally ignoring their letters.

Are there still suppliers out there who offer a quarterly bill service - cos if there are, I'm switching !

Looking forward to your comments / suggestions.

Vestra

I think all suppliers offer quarterly billing, just scottish power does not want to give you credit.

Cardew

frugallass wrote: »

We put so much money away each month and then pay the bill when it comes in - we do not believe in paying these people for something which we haven't yet used plus the money would be earning interest in their account rather than ours if we paid up front.

Why don't you pay by monthly Direct Debit as the discount you get for paying by that method is far more than the interest you get from having the money in your account.

Secondly, whilst you don't want to pay for something you haven't used, paying monthly by cheque/cash isn't such an arrangement.

In any case have you considered that they don't want to give you energy you haven't paid for!

Scottish Power along with every other company do allow quarterly payment in arrears, but they have to be satisfied that the customer is credit-worthy.

frugallass

So if I were to input my meter readings on a monthly basis would that automatically generate a bill from Scottish Power?

I'm quite happy to pay what I owe (even if it is monthly) but I do object to paying for something I haven't used.

KimYeovil

If you want to pay a higher net cost per unit and would rather have varying bills then you are free to switch to another supplier and tariff.

frugallass

Cardew wrote: »

Why don't you pay by monthly Direct Debit as the discount you get for paying by that method is far more than the interest you get from having the money in your account.

I don't want to pay by direct debit - I disagree with the way they can just alter the monthly payments - I had a bad experience with that some time ago hence the reason why I went back to quarterly bills

Cardew wrote: »

Secondly, whilst you don't want to pay for something you haven't used, paying monthly by cheque/cash isn't such an arrangement.

I'd be quite happy to pay cash/cheque on a monthly basis - as I said before, if I could input my meter reading, see how much I owe and then pay it.

Cardew wrote: »

In any case have you considered that they don't want to give you energy you haven't paid for!

fair enough - if that's how they feel then I will find a new supplier

Cardew wrote: »

Scottish Power along with every other company do allow quarterly payment in arrears, but they have to be satisfied that the customer is credit-worthy.

Would 'credit worthiness' be assessed by the property or the individual because at my previous property Scottish Power were happy to offer the quarterly service, this new monthly 'in advance' bill has come into force since we moved?

KimYeovil

Is the convenience of quarterly bills really worth the 25%-odd price premium?

(The change by Scottish Power is a new policy, nothing to do with your status.)

lovebugfamilly

I pay quarterly via eon via direct debit so just pay whole bill when it comes in , I much prefer it this way so I know Im not over or underpaying for what I use

DVardysShadow

frugallass wrote: »

I don't want to pay by direct debit - I disagree with the way they can just alter the monthly payments - I had a bad experience with that some time ago hence the reason why I went back to quarterly bills

Same here. Every utility has in some way abused our Direct Debits and when challenged to state how the payments were calculated, all gave evasive answers which did not permit an amount to be calculated and when finally pressed, all claimed that the methods of calculation of the monthly payment were a 'commercial secret'.

icefall

Ebico offer quarterly direct debit with no penalty.

Fire_Fox

lovebugfamilly wrote: »

I pay quarterly via eon via direct debit so just pay whole bill when it comes in , I much prefer it this way so I know Im not over or underpaying for what I use

But you wouldn't be over or under paying if you supplied regular meter readings. And you'd get a discount for paying by DD.