Big Leap in Gas and Electric Direct Debit

Annab1982

I have been on a duel fuel tariff with Npower since we moved into our house in May 2010. Initially we were paying as we received the bills but couldn't keep up so started paying by direct debit in November 2010. I was told it would be £90 per month (£50 for electricity and £40 for gas) and that this also included my arrears which would be paid off in 6 months. So I was surprised today to receive a bill to say that my direct debit was now £225 per month. This was based on an estimated reading so I phoned and gave them an accurate reading and my monthly bill is now £250. I asked why it was so much more and was told that the £90 a month wasn't enough for the amount if gas and electric we were using, so the bill has gone up and we also have to pay the outstanding balance for the last 9 months. I am shocked by this, as they set the amount of £90 having had readings from when we moved in in May up to when the DD started in Nov. Surely they should be setting more realistic monthly payments - our usage has not changed since last year. Our budget is really tight and there is no way we can afford this massive increase. I thought of switching suppliers but Npower would try and stop this as I now have an outstanding balance. I feel a bit trapped now and amnott sure what to do now. Can anyone help me out with advice?
Thanks

Hellblazer

Just tell me this, whats your outstanding balance, tariff, and what meter?

gazjoneswales

Annab1982 wrote: »

I have been on a duel fuel tariff with Npower since we moved into our house in May 2010. Initially we were paying as we received the bills but couldn't keep up so started paying by direct debit in November 2010. I was told it would be £90 per month (£50 for electricity and £40 for gas) and that this also included my arrears which would be paid off in 6 months. So I was surprised today to receive a bill to say that my direct debit was now £225 per month. This was based on an estimated reading so I phoned and gave them an accurate reading and my monthly bill is now £250. I asked why it was so much more and was told that the £90 a month wasn't enough for the amount if gas and electric we were using, so the bill has gone up and we also have to pay the outstanding balance for the last 9 months. I am shocked by this, as they set the amount of £90 having had readings from when we moved in in May up to when the DD started in Nov. Surely they should be setting more realistic monthly payments - our usage has not changed since last year. Our budget is really tight and there is no way we can afford this massive increase. I thought of switching suppliers but Npower would try and stop this as I now have an outstanding balance. I feel a bit trapped now and amnott sure what to do now. Can anyone help me out with advice?
Thanks

The problem is that when you set up your dd you had only been in the property for 6 months, and these were mainly the summer months. So based on this it would be near enough impossible to set an accurate dd based on your usage. (also it was an exceptionally cold winter which nobody predicted)

How often do you receive bills from Npower?
What is your annual KwH usage (npower should be able to supply this for you)
What is the current balance on the account?
Are you on the best tariff available to you?

Annab1982

Outstanding balance is £539.62, I'm on a duel fuel tariff (sorry don't have any other details-we inherited it from last tenant and as monthly DD seemed reasonable didn't think about comparing/switching). We get bills every 6 months,although they said that I started the DD in middle of billing, so haven't had a bill since starting the DD. They say our annual usage is 4778 kWh of electricity and 13464 kWh of gas.

gazjoneswales

Annab1982 wrote: »

Outstanding balance is £539.62, I'm on a duel fuel tariff (sorry don't have any other details-we inherited it from last tenant and as monthly DD seemed reasonable didn't think about comparing/switching). We get bills every 6 months,although they said that I started the DD in middle of billing, so haven't had a bill since starting the DD. They say our annual usage is 4778 kWh of electricity and 13464 kWh of gas.

Is that outstanding balance for both fuels combined. Your gas usage is actually below average but your electric usage is above average. Which area do you live in?

Hellblazer

Your outstanding debt won't be helping matters. Best bet is to ring them up and give them a meter reading and ask them to generate a bill, it's would be a safe bet to say that DD amount isn't accurate. Give a meter reading and take it from there.

gazjoneswales

Hellblazer wrote: »

Your outstanding debt won't be helping matters. Best bet is to ring them up and give them a meter reading and ask them to generate a bill, it's would be a safe bet to say that DD amount isn't accurate. Give a meter reading and take it from there.

OP has already done this as stated in opening post and this pushed the dd from £225 to £250

Annab1982

Yes thats the combined balance. Separately its £287.75 for the electricity and £251.77 for the gas. We live in Watford. I am at home with my children during the day which could be why our electricity is a bit higher than average. Also we have a dehumidifier on all the time as our flat is very humid,although I was assured it didn't use too much electricity! I also use the tumble dryer sometimes which I know does use quite a bit. We have one of those devices which monitors our electricity usage so I keep an eye on how much we're using.

Hellblazer

You are correct my apologies.

Annab1982

Yes gave them accurate meter readings yesterday and has sent it higher. They said to ring after my next DD goes out next week and they can look at it then, but the man I spoke to thought all they could do was spread the outstanding balance over 12 months instead of 6 which wont save a huge amount.

HappyMJ

Annab1982 wrote: »

Outstanding balance is £539.62, I'm on a duel fuel tariff (sorry don't have any other details-we inherited it from last tenant and as monthly DD seemed reasonable didn't think about comparing/switching). We get bills every 6 months,although they said that I started the DD in middle of billing, so haven't had a bill since starting the DD. They say our annual usage is 4778 kWh of electricity and 13464 kWh of gas.

Assuming my region East Midlands Npower Standard Plan Pay on Receipt of Bill £1,246 per year over 6 months would be £623 plus £1,141 over 9 months at monthly direct debit rates would be £856 total billed amount of £1,479 less your £900 worth of payments leaves £579 still to pay. The regional differences and/or timing of the bill probably account for the £40 of difference between your figure and my figure.

Right now we have £540 outstanding which is as expected and based on your usage your next years bill will be around £1,289. Divide the outstanding amount by 4 and add that to the annual amount divided by 12 and you get about £240 per month.

Normal so far...

You could try asking that the outstanding amount be divided by 12 and added to your normal monthly usage to make £200 per month.

edit: which in your last post has been offered to you.