LARGE gas bill!! Help!

Jennylouise90

Long story short, lived in my home from oct 2011 to present. 3 bed semi detached. Heating on approx 6 hours on a week day day and approx 8-10 at the weekend if we are in, 1 shower each a day plus normal use of gas hob.
Our gas bill has been estimated from the first actual reading in oct 2011 and it has just been read for the first time since.
British gas are claiming in this time we have used 40900 kwh.
Personally I can't see this being correct and think its a lot??
Spent over an hour on the phone today with no joy and being told basically this is the bill pay it.
Does anyone this amount is a lot /normal/not enough???

withabix

Could quite easily come to that consumption in 18 months with gas cooking and heating.

zerog

Have you read the meter? Is it metric or imperial?

Jennylouise90

I've read the average is 16000 kwh per year?

To date we have paid approx £1000 in bills. They are asking for an extra £1400 on top of this.

Not 100% but I believe it's imperial. May not be correct on that though! Can check and post again tomorrow.

Nada666

Yes, but you have had two whole winters so nearly two whole years - usage over summer is minimal. 20,450 is not that high. (In fact, until a couple of years ago, that was the annual average.)

macman

You've hardly helped yourself by failing to submit a single reading in 18 months. The supplier is only obliged to read the meter every two years. A huge catch-up bill is invariably the result of this. 40,900kWh over two cold winters is perfectly feasible.
However, your £ figures make no sense. 40,000kWh would cost around £1,600 at current prices, not £2,400. Does this maybe include your electricity DD as well? You need to go back through the bills and work out exactly what you paid, and based on how many kWh. Then you know the shortfall in kWh and can check the deficit in payment.

Jennylouise90

Yes this is what I mean, something somewhere doesn't add up correctly. This is my first home with my partner after living with parents so yes I totally understand the need for giving the readings now. A lesson learnt! But I just can't see understand the amount of money we are being asked to pay when I know how much we have already paid, and the time I have my heating/water on.

While on the phone to BG yesterday we asked them to calculate what we had used since the last reading 37 days ago, after working it out he said we had used approx £200 worth in 37 days. Which to me doesn't seem right!

Jennylouise90

And no this is gas alone, electric is with another company.

Nada666

What prices are you charged per unit/ standing charges? As Macman says, your consumption in kWh is fine (though with room for cutting down) but there is something strange with the cash totals.

macman

Jennylouise90 wrote: »

Yes this is what I mean, something somewhere doesn't add up correctly. This is my first home with my partner after living with parents so yes I totally understand the need for giving the readings now. A lesson learnt! But I just can't see understand the amount of money we are being asked to pay when I know how much we have already paid, and the time I have my heating/water on.

While on the phone to BG yesterday we asked them to calculate what we had used since the last reading 37 days ago, after working it out he said we had used approx £200 worth in 37 days. Which to me doesn't seem right!

So do as suggested and go through the figures yourself. All you need is your opening read, your current read, and what you have already paid.
Is your meter metric or imperial, and are you being billed for the correct type?
What you have used in 37 days is not really relevant.

Jennylouise90

Here is what I have at the moment.

First Metre Reading 5th Oct 2011 - 20596
Last Metre Reading 4th March 2013 - 24253

British Gas
Standard Tariff
No Standing Charge/No Cancellation Fee

Price
Tier 1 - 8.019p (First 2680 kwh)
Tier 2 - 4.479p (Anything after the 2680 kwh)
Price includes vat

Total Kwh used in this time - 40929.97292

Also as a note, it says the below is the average use in my area.
Monthly billQuarterly billYearly bill£67£202£807