Newbie - help with electric in rented flat...

tintysteph

Hello!

I hope this is in the right place, sorry if it isnt!!

Ok, so my bf and I are moving into a rented flat at the end of the month and neither of us know ANYTHING about electric bills and stuff? We need to obviously get the best rate as the whole house is elec, no gas etc!
Can anyone advise me what I need to look for to get the best deal? I have no idea where to start! When I go to look at bits online, it asks for all this other information like how much of this and that I use and I dont know!!

Thanks in advance, and sorry if this is in the wrong place or doesn't make sense lol!

Cardew

I assume you haven't got storage heaters and an Economy 7 tariff.

Go on a comparison website and enter 5,000kWh per year, then 8,000kWh, then 10,000kWh and you will get a pattern.

st999

And remember to take a note of your meter reading

Stan

tintysteph

Ohh ok, I have no idea what an Economy 7 tariff is sorry! I will try the kWh readings, didnt think to do that for a rough idea! thanks!

Yep, i will DEFINATELY take note of the reading, I cant afford to be ripped off lol!

Thanks!

fullstop

Your landlord might already have a supplier in place, and you might not be able to change, so best to contact them first and see if you can change suppliers.

tintysteph

fullstop wrote: »

Your landlord might already have a supplier in place, and you might not be able to change, so best to contact them first and see if you can change suppliers.

yeah i was thinking he might already have it with someone! thanks for your help guys! :j

amtrakuk

Ask your new Landlord what the typical bills were for the last tenant, he might be able to give you an idea how much you have to budget for.

A good way is to budget for more than you expect. If your paying by Direct debit, although tempting don't take the unbelievably low DD they set by default. Ask to set it to say £80 a month yes you'll be building a credit but you wont get a shock when the winter bill review happens in the spring! Keep this up until you're account has settled to your average usage over the year.

bristol_pilot

When you first move in, you will have a 'deemed contract' with the existing supplier. It will take a month minimum to change this even if you sign up with an alternative supplier on the first day. When you move in, take meter readings and immediately ring up the existing supplier to tell them what they are, otherwise you may end up paying for the previous tenants' electricity.

Landlords are not legally able to tell tenants what supplier to use, whatever it says in the tenancy agreement.