Help - just had bill through...

Sunshine_and_Roses

I am with BG for both gas and electricity. Just checked my account now and the combined bill comes to £100 for both per month by direct debit.

Do I look at switching now or stay put for a while? If this is the summer bill what on earth am I going to be paying in the winter?

Time to go shopping for jumpers I think!

irnbru_2

clareski wrote:

If this is the summer bill what on earth am I going to be paying in the winter?

£100

DDs are averaged over the year.

What you should do is get your old bills (if they are available) and compare your consumption.

You could also challenge the £100 (as others have successfully done) and ask for a lower value.

Sunshine_and_Roses

Is it a good idea to start looking to switch now, and if so who is the best to try?

Scarlett1

I pay £30 per month by DD for Powergen dual fuel online for a 2 bedroom terraced house

Debt_Free_Chick

clareski wrote:

Is it a good idea to start looking to switch now, and if so who is the best to try?

Hold on a minute .... your gas & leccy might not come to £100. That's just the amount that BG want you to pay them every month. You could end up in credit and if you do, you will have been putting savings with BG and getting no interest! :eek:

Do you have to pay on that awful monthly DD scheme?

masonic

Debt_Free_Chick wrote:

Do you have to pay on that awful monthly DD scheme?

Do you not think it's worth it for a 10% discount for gas and 5% discount for electricity?

Debt_Free_Chick

masonic wrote:

Do you not think it's worth it for a 10% discount for gas and 5% discount for electricity?

I think you have to weigh up the interest you would get if you put the monthly DD payment into a savings account instead. They only calculate the discount based on your actual bill (not what you pay) - and the suppliers usually like you to overpay so they can earn interest on your money. If you put the monthly payment into a savings account, you would get interest on what you actually paid.

Could you confirm that the cheapest suppliers offer these scales of discounts? I thought it was nearer to 3%

oldwiring

One has also to consider ,that during the winter quarters the amount in the hands of the co may not cover the amount outstanding. Effectively on is in resceipt of a loan. Now opt for payinng quarterly and put regular money in to a personal savings account. That large winter bill drops on the mat. Ouch, where is the money to come from to pay it? A bank overdraft- what are the rates on that and fees? Some on tell me; I'm privileged in that respect as I am retired bank staff. The benfit of the DD option to either party also depends on the time of year it is set up

I may do some comparisons using my own usage pattern, but not today, as substabtiallly invloved with my church.

BTW there is an article to be found at http://www.nfcg.org.uk/ConsNews/cn197p02.htm

Some may find it worth a read. With Southern Electric the discount is 6%

Debt_Free_Chick

oldwiring wrote:

That large winter bill drops on the mat. Ouch, where is the money to come from to pay it?

From the "overpayments" you saved in the summer. The process is exactly the same as that which the utility companies use for the DD scheme - except that YOU get to hold on to YOUR money until the bill arrives.

susank

I have just had an estimated bill - it was a few units short of the actual usage units so I have contacted them with a new reading and hiked it up a little as the prices are going up again and I would rather pay 50 units at the lower price just now and save a little bit later on!

masonic

Debt_Free_Chick wrote:

Could you confirm that the cheapest suppliers offer these scales of discounts? I thought it was nearer to 3%

The OP is with british gas. Those are the discounts BG applies. With other suppliers it's harder to determine the discounts as they tend to be hidden within the unit prices, but I've never sat down and worked it out.

Debt_Free_Chick wrote:

...and the suppliers usually like you to overpay so they can earn interest on your money.

Really? I have never been in that situation. I tell them what to set my initial DD to be (based on annual usage and current prices). Normally, it isn't long before prices go up, so my account falls into debt - I am then stoozing money from my energy supplier! At some point they see I have fallen into debt, so they increase my DD*, but by that time (usually around 12 months) I have already got itchy feet and am in the throes of switching supplier again anyway... and the cycle repeats.

Edit: * Just as an aside, the last time this happened my gas supplier sent out a detailed calculation showing how they had worked out my new monthly payment and I have to confess I totally agreed with it. However, I was about to move house, so those new payments never kicked in.