British Gas Bill Quadrupled - Advice needed please for newbie

Cardew

Stompa wrote: »

Makes me glad I still pay quarterly for what I've actually used. It may cost slightly more, but at least you always know precisely where you stand.

On Direct Debit you also "know precisely where you stand" if you monitor your account; it ain't rocket science!

If you pay your bills quarterly you don't "know precisely where you stand" unless you monitor your bills, as much of the time they are based on estimated meter readings.

So in the cases above(and that applies to any utility company- not just BG) if you check your account you can see that you are in a debit situation and can put aside the money you owe in an interest earning account.

That way you gain twice; interest on your money and get a discount for paying by DD.

matthewcb

I'm not surprised to hear this.

We switched to British Gas for Gas and Electric on the basis of their monthly quotes being much cheaper than EDF. Quotes based on real readings, not estimates.

Then, after *three* months, they try to quadruple the payments! My guess is they give you favourable quotes to entice you before putting them up to the 'real' price.

Immediate cancellation of direct debits and switch to Scottish Power followed...

Stompa

Cardew wrote: »

That way you gain twice; interest on your money and get a discount for paying by DD.

Though to some extent I am gaining interest by paying quarterly as opposed to monthly, and since I do pay by DD I do get that particular discount.

Cardew

matthewcb wrote: »

I'm not surprised to hear this.

We switched to British Gas for Gas and Electric on the basis of their monthly quotes being much cheaper than EDF. Quotes based on real readings, not estimates.

Then, after *three* months, they try to quadruple the payments! My guess is they give you favourable quotes to entice you before putting them up to the 'real' price.

Immediate cancellation of direct debits and switch to Scottish Power followed...

Welcome to the forum.

Thats what all the companies do to a greater or lesser extent.

The comparison sites and the call centre operators have one aim - to get commission; and they achieve that by getting you to change company.

A quote for a monthly DD payment is absolutely meaningless as it bears no relationship to the price you pay for gas/electricity.
i.e. the company with the most expensive tariff on the market could "quote" you the cheapest DD payment. You will still be paying the most expensive tariff.

The only way to determine the cheapest company is to check the price per kWh and what discounts apply.

Cardew

Stompa wrote: »

Though to some extent I am gaining interest by paying quarterly as opposed to monthly, and since I do pay by DD I do get that particular discount.

Agreed, one reason for the DD discount is to offset cash flow.

However in the cases above, where people are under paying with a low DD payment and building up a debit balance, they gain twice;

DD discount and, in effect, getting an interest free loan from the Utility company.

Stompa

Cardew wrote: »

However in the cases above, where people are under paying with a low DD payment and building up a debit balance, they gain twice;

DD discount and, in effect, getting an interest free loan from the Utility company.

True enough, but as you said, if they're not monitoring what's going on they also can get a bit of a shock!