Electricity Bill

shortld

Hi,
If someone could help me i would be very grateful,
I moved into a flat with my mate it was a 2 bed with 1 large storage heater and 3 small ones. On the day of arrival i called Npower and explained the situation they advised me the best thing to do was answer a few questions around what and how much electricity we are likely to use, i did this and also estimated higher than i thought we would use with all of my answers. They then told me that we should pay around £30 a month so we proceeded with this and set up the direct debit.
6 Months later we have moved out, i called Npower with my final readings but i only had 1 reading instead of 2. Npower advised me it was best to go back and get the 2nd reading, this took a few weeks as i had moved out and had to go through the letting agents. As soon as i obtained the reading I called Npower and gave it them also asking them to send any final bills and to close the account off.
about 2 weeks later i received a letter from them explaining the way i pay my direct debits is changing, I thought this to be a little strange so I called them and they told me that my account was not closed and they only had 1 reading for me. After a while on the phone and me trying to convince Npower i have already given them all the info they need the agent told me 'he would sort it out' I asked them to call me if they couldn’t find a reading as I might be able to get it again from the letting agents.
However i have now received a final bill of £975.56 this is on top of the £30 a month i was advised to pay and was paying meaning the electricity bill for 6months heating (Jan-June) is £1155.
Surely this can not be right?
Also can they do this, advise one price and then upon leaving advise me I was paying nearly £160 a month out??
I now have to support myself and pay for current bills with a bill i cannot afford to pay off in 1!!!
Any advice or help on this would be greatly appreciated.

KimYeovil

But how much were you actually using? Both you and they threw an estimate in to the air. Did you bother to check whether it was reliable once you were in situ? £1100 does not sound too high for all electric heating where you were not paying attention to your useage. If you used it you need to pay for it. (You are right, though, that £30 is a ridiculous sum to suggest for a two-bedroom flat. Unfortunately that does not change your liabililty.)

How did the day/night rate breakdown? Were you using the storage heaters as storage heaters.

It is very important when moving in and moving out to take a note of all meter readings. These should be shared with both suppliers and landlords/agents. And make sure you keep your own copy of them safely.

And it is as important to keep an (at least monthly) eye on your meters to see how much you are actually spending.

Katie-Kat-Kins

KimYeovil wrote: »

(You are right, though, that £30 is a ridiculous sum to suggest for a two-bedroom flat. Unfortunately that does not change your liabililty.)

They seem pretty good at grossly underestimating usage, they suggested this amount for our three bedroom all electric detached house!!!