Responsibility for Gas/Electricity Bills

Cardew

With monotonous regularity we get posts along the lines:

"I have been paying £xx by Direct Debit for my gas/electricity for the past 3 years. They now say I am now £yyy in debt and they want to increase my Direct Debit to £zzz which I can’t afford."

This post is usually followed by one or more of the following:

It cannot possibly be my fault:

It’s the utility company’s fault.

It can’t possibly be as much as £yyy I am being ripped off.

Can I change suppliers while I am £yyy in debt?

How can I get out of paying this debt.
It seems to me that:

Nobody should sign a Direct Debit mandate unless they understand the principles of the scheme. i.e. 12 payments of, say, £50 does not mean your bill is £600.

You should understand that there have been large rises in all the utilities over the past couple of years, and if you haven’t increased your DD you are probably increasing your debt.

You should at least read your bill and see if the meter readings are estimated. Then either understand the implications of an estimated bill, or send in your correct reading.

Gas and Electricity are like any other commodity – if you use them, you should pay for them.

Lastly everyone should understand and take responsibility for their own bills.