Huge FINAL Bill

thebestrc

Hi was was just wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction as to how i go about addressing this problem.
Today i received my final bill from Scottish Power for our gas usage which is £186.13 , considering i paid a DD on the 29/03/10 for £113 that would mean my gas usage for the 3 weeks i've been with them is £297.13. That can't be right can it??

On the gas bill there are 2 charges:

Period 23/03/10 to 30/03/10 which estimates i've used 118 units in 7 days at a cost of £133.14 (Start: 6595E End:6713E)

Period 31/03/10 to 14/04/10 which estimates i've used 145 units in 15 days at a cost of £152.07 (Start: 6713E End:6858A)

Is it me or does this seems extremely high?? I am a student living in rented accommodation and there a 6 of us but even so it does seem rather extortionate. Can anyone offer any help on this matter?

deedee71

Your start reading is of 6595 is an (E) estimate. Do you know what the actual reading was when you moved in?

thebestrc

No unfortunately i do not. I did give them the last reading though of 6858. Is this bill average compared to others??

spiro

The start and end reading on the 1st line are both estimates. I presume you haeve previously had a bill up to the 23/03 which would have at least the end reading as an estimate. Did you check that reading or any previous bills that had an E as the end reading? If not you are playing catch up and the bill has nothing to do with what you have used in the last couple of weeks but is it the difference between what they estimated you have used since the last actual reading and what you have actually used.

The golden rule is that you should check ever bill (gas & elec) and if the end reading is an E(stimate) call them up with an actual reading if the estimate is more than a few units out especially if they have under estimated.

deedee71

Did all 6 of you move in at the same time? Did none of the previous tenants take an exit reading?

You could throw yourself on the mercy of the provider but you may all have learned a harsh but valuable lesson here.


ETA: I think I've misunderstood - I thought you had only moved in 3 weeks ago. Or is it that you haven't taken an accurate reading for some time?

thebestrc

Found the last EON bill i had and the 6595 was estimated by them not an actual reading.

@deedee71 - haven't taken one for a while, what with us being students we're generally lazy.

short_bird

Sorry, I now see you've given the new supplier an actual reading. Take a reading today of all the dials on the meter or numbers off the readout and get the serial number off the meter. Call your new supplier with both these bits of information. That way, if there has been a meter exchange, they can check that you're being billed for the right number of units and may need to ask a few more questions.

Also, with a gas meter, it helps if your suppliers check if you're being billed for a metric meter instead of an imperial meter. (As a rule of thumb, if it has a digital readout, it's metric.)

Check with your landlord if they take readings when the previous tenants move out; some do, some don't.

I get an awful feeling though, like Spiro said, you're paying a catch up bill. It may be worth checking the settings on timers, thermostats and radiators to ensure you're not leaving things on all the while.