Elderly lady paying too much?

chesky369

An elderly (80) lady I know very slightly lives in a ground-floor flat. Her electricity is supplied by Southern Electric and they are charging what works out as an average of approx. £165 per month. Her central heating and water heating is gas and she only uses electricity for lighting, TV and cooking (no computer). I think this is way too much but SE say they checked her meter a year ago. I think she'd have to be cooking all day every day to spend this much.

What do others think?

mpet

Sounds way too high - I pay that each month for combined gas & electricity for a family of 4. Have you seen this lady's bills? Are they estimated readings (I would guess so, if they say they read meter 1 year ago).

A simple check would be to read the meter yourself and compare to the reading on the last bill. If it differs - phone and submit a new meter reading.

Pink_fluff

£165 in total. Do you know what she spends on each? How long is the heating and hot water switched on for each day?

chesky369

No, that's just for electricity. The gas is separate.

chesky369

I've asked them for a complete statement; they won't send someone to read the meter as they only send them out once a year - the rest of the time it has to be read by the client - bit difficult in her case, as it's up high and she would have to stand on a chair - at 80? I only heard about it last week so I'm still at the asking stage. I wanted them to send someone to check the meter but they said if there wasn't anything wrong, there'd be a charge of £60= £75 which she was worried about committing to.

dogshome

For the elecrticity bill to be f £1980 a year in a single person household that has gas central heating, something has to be seriously wrong, is it possible that something in her house is on 24/7, say an immersion heater with a faulty thermostat? However Southern Electric would right if they said they could not discuss the account with a third party - If you want to get involved have your old friend write a letter to SE giving you the authority to deal with SE on her behalf.
You need to ask them for copies of the last 5 bills, which will tell you how often the meter is actually read, the tariff she is on and what she uses seasonally. If these documents back up her billing level it's worth having a local electrician check her meter for a fault with the house wiring or an appliance - If all that checks out OK it's worth the £50 to have SE check the meter
Good Luck

Cardew

It is impossible to spend £165 a month on electricity if gas is used for heating.

The likely causes are:

The lady has misread the meter - very easy to do if it is one of the old type meters with the dials that move clockwise and anti-clockwise.

That in the past the lady had run up a large debit balance and this is being paid back at £165 a month until the debt is paid off.

I suggest you read the meter and check that reading against the meter reading on the latest bill.

If you speak to Southern yourself(the lady will need to be present to give her permission) they will explain.

digimate

Re your question regarding the high bill, my sister has all elect in her 1 bedroom flat (economy 7) and her monthly bills are about 97.00 per month, she uses the tumble dryer on average about 6 hours per night.

If i were you, i would eg take a meter reading on a monday and then again a week later, minus the amount of units used and then divide by 7 days, this will show her average daily consumption - or if you prefer, take the reads a week apart and call her supplier (pls make sure account holder is present - Data protection) and advise them of the meter reads.

In regards to being charged for an engineer to inspect the meter, if the lady in question paid this and the meter was in fact faulty, this would then be credited back to the lady as she had a faulty meter. if you require any more info, give me a shout!!

Dee;)

Stalker

As an elderly single lady she would be considered as vulnerable and therefore should be offered assistance in ensuring her costs are as low as possible such as being put on a social tariff or energy saving measures to assist in reducing costs. You can contact Consumer Focus for advice the Government watchdog for vulnerable consumers or use a site such as disputer to register and manage your complaint but ensure you say that the case relates to a vulnerable customer.

Cheers

James

moonrakerz

digimate wrote: »

she uses the tumble dryer on average about 6 hours per night.

,

.................does she take in washing ??

kippen_noedel

cardew wrote:

It is impossible to spend £165 a month on electricity if gas is used for heating.

Oh yes it is & a lot more besides, though would be stunning if an old lady in a flat could use so much.

chesky369 wrote: »

An elderly (80) lady I know very slightly lives in a ground-floor flat. Her electricity is supplied by Southern Electric and they are charging what works out as an average of approx. £165 per month. Her central heating and water heating is gas and she only uses electricity for lighting, TV and cooking (no computer). I think this is way too much but SE say they checked her meter a year ago. I think she'd have to be cooking all day every day to spend this much.

What do others think?

check the MPAN number is correct,
turn everything off, see if the meter is still turning
turn everything except fridge/freezer for an hour, take readings before and after
repeat the process one thing at a time until you have everything on that she uses regularly

make records of everything you do.