First home

gazza3004

Me and my partner we be moving in to our first house soon.
It is a new build, 2 bed bathroom and a downstairs WC, a electric oven and gas stove, with a Combi boiler.
Because it is our first house we don't know what our usage for gas, electricity and water will be.
Would someone be able to help with what would be the best deal.

Regards

Gary

CashStrapped

You will be best using national average figures for now untill you have a years worth of data.

Remember the majority of youruse will come during the winter months (november to feb).

Average figures are around 12,500KWH for Gas and 3500 KWH for electric.

If it just two of you ( and you both work most of the day) in a modern house try using 9000KWH Gas and 3000KWH electric.

After you move in you need to do the following

1) You need to find out which supplier already supplies your property as you are in an automatic contract with them on their standard tariffs.

2) Record your meter readings as soon as you move in. Take a picture with a camera phone. Do not forget the water meter too.

3) Create an account with them and aske to go out their cheapest tariff that does not have fees for switching away.

4) Use the figures above ( the same company may be cheapest with both sets) and find out how your current company compares.

5) If the difference is large you may want to switch. You can also get cashback from certain sites so do not switch dirrectly.

Once the account is up and running you will have a direct debit set up. Remember that the direct debit is desgned to verage out the whole year so in summer it may seem like you are overpaying and building up a credit.

Some people mistakely ask for this credit back before winter. However that credit is designed to build up as during winter the direct debit will underpay and the credit will be used up.

By the time you get back to summer the balance should be back to 0.

I would also submit meter readings every month on the same day. This will give you a good idea as to your yearly usage pattern.

Consumerist

Hi Gazza and welcome to the forum.

Please don't repeat your posts in different places. I have responded on your other post.

HappyMJ

gazza3004 wrote: »

Me and my partner we be moving in to our first house soon.
It is a new build, 2 bed bathroom and a downstairs WC, a electric oven and gas stove, with a Combi boiler.
Because it is our first house we don't know what our usage for gas, electricity and water will be.
Would someone be able to help with what would be the best deal.

Regards

Gary

Look at the EPC. It should give you an estimate. For example my EPC for this 2 bedroom property says 119kWh/m2 you would then multiply that by the area of the property mine being 58m2 which would make 6,900kWh/year then you've got yourself a reasonable estimate of energy usage.

The average home is much larger than this one and would use around 12,000 to 15,000kWh per year.

D_M_E

For a brand new new build property, providing both of you are out at work during the day, the annual figures I would use would be gas 8,000KWH and 1500KWH for the electric and I think those figures are generous.

If it has an immersion heater I would make sure the thing is turned off and stays off, particularly if there's an electric shower or one that is fed by the boiler.

These days, new builds tend to be well insulated and smaller than of old, so they require less heating and less energy.

The builders should have informed you who the suppliers are, but as has been pointed out, as soon as you get the keys you need to read the meters and photograph the meters showing the readings, and find out who the builders have fixed up the supply with and contact whoveritis, tell them you are now responsible for the energy bills and ask to be put on their cheapest no exit fee tariff then check immediately if that supplier or someone else can offer you an even cheaper rate.

You cannot switch until you have informed the original suppliers of your occupancy, and you should know that you will be put on the most expensive standard tariff until you contact the suppliers and ask to be put on their cheapest no exit fee rate - which could well be the standard one depending on who the builder has stuck the property with - and the standard tariffs could be up to double or more what the cheapest is.