Highest tariff for 4 years.

Mr_pickle

We moved into our house over four years ago, the house is a private rent. When we moved in the house had storage heaters up until 1 1/2 years ago. My electricity bill per month has been between £130 and £190.

We phoned Scottish power (upon advise from a friend) and they said our new monthly bill could be £62 per month.

I am very clueless when it comes to this kind of thing, but how can they have me pay so much for so long without offering me a lower tariff.

I have struggled paying over the past four years and feel so angry and upset that they sat back and happily took my hard earned money.




The question is,

Is there any way I can claim some of my money back?

Thank you very much in advance.

Michael

Ectophile

It's in their interest to leave you on a high tariff if you don't do anything about it. Have they never mentioned in any of the bills that there are alternative tariffs?

All you can do is switch. You have no grounds to claim a refund.

PaschalFun

Mr_pickle wrote: »

We moved into our house over four years ago, the house is a private rent. When we moved in the house had storage heaters up until 1 1/2 years ago. My electricity bill per month has been between £130 and £190.

We phoned Scottish power (upon advise from a friend) and they said our new monthly bill could be £62 per month.

I am very clueless when it comes to this kind of thing, but how can they have me pay so much for so long without offering me a lower tariff.

I have struggled paying over the past four years and feel so angry and upset that they sat back and happily took my hard earned money.




The question is,

Is there any way I can claim some of my money back?

Thank you very much in advance.

Michael

Has Scottish Power been your supplier since moving in?

I think you may have confused how much you pay per month via Direct Debit with what you are actually charged for your energy consumption.

Whilst suppliers do often have better value tariffs than their standard variable tariff, no supplier offers a tariff that is only 30% the cost of that standard tariff.

More stringent terms usually apply to the better value tariffs (such as fixed terms subject to early exit fees) and suppliers cannot automatically place you on these tariffs without your express approval.

Your bills, or at least your annual sattement, should inform you of any better tariff available to you from your existing supplier.

You cannot reclaim any money by your failure to act.

Start here:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/you-switch-gas-electricity

matelodave

It's down to you to find the bset tariff for your circumstances.

There have been plenty of comments and advice in the news and other media advising people to switch supplier or check tariffs as large savings can be made especially if you are on a suppliers standard variable tariff. Therefore if you've chosen not to do anything about it then it's your fault if you think you are overpaying.

It's no different to buying petrol in the the most expensive garage rather than going somewhere else and getting it a bit cheaper - it relies on you putting some effort in.

Even if SP say your new monthly bill "could" be significantly less, make sure that you are using figures that actually reflect your consumption in kwh and not just estimates.

If you've been unaware of the fact that you could have been saving a lot of money then make sure that you understand what you are being offered. Use a couple of comarison sites and put in your actual annual consumption in kwh - you should be able to get that from your previous bills.

Cardew

Mr_pickle wrote: »

We moved into our house over four years ago, the house is a private rent. When we moved in the house had storage heaters up until 1 1/2 years ago. My electricity bill per month has been between £130 and £190.

We phoned Scottish power (upon advise from a friend) and they said our new monthly bill could be £62 per month.

Michael

What replaced the storage heaters for heating?

Were you on an Economy 7 tariff and changed to a different 'normal'(i.e.24/7) tariff?

Mr_pickle

So I guess it's my fault. I'm just angry they can sit back and take more than they need like that.

I've changed to oil. I don't use a lot in spring and summer but more in autumn winter. About 900Litres per year. Roughly £400 .

I don't really know what tariff I was on. Imy not very savvy when it comes to my bills.

I'm guessing I need to learn.

Thanks all.
Michael

Cardew

Mr_pickle wrote: »

So I guess it's my fault. I'm just angry they can sit back and take more than they need like that.

I've changed to oil. I don't use a lot in spring and summer but more in autumn winter. About 900Litres per year. Roughly £400 .

I don't really know what tariff I was on. Imy not very savvy when it comes to my bills.

I'm guessing I need to learn.

Thanks all.
Michael

You simply cannot compare your electricity bills for the time when you used electricity for heating and hot water, with a period when you use oil for heating/hot water.

I assume you were on an Economy 7 tariff when you used storage heaters. You should now be on a 'normal' 24/7 tariff as this means cheaper electricity for 17 hours during the day.

As you are with Scottish Power this means you should have had a new meter fitted as Scottish Power will not give you a 24/7 hour tariff when you have an Economy 7 meter.

PaschalFun

Mr_pickle wrote: »

So I guess it's my fault. I'm just angry they can sit back and take more than they need like that.

I've changed to oil. I don't use a lot in spring and summer but more in autumn winter. About 900Litres per year. Roughly £400 .

I don't really know what tariff I was on. Imy not very savvy when it comes to my bills.

I'm guessing I need to learn.

Thanks all.
Michael

If, as you say, the supplier did indeed "take more than they need", then your account will currently be in credit.

Unfortunately, you failed to answer my earlier question i.e.Has Scottish Power been your supplier since moving in?

If not, then when you moved, you should have been sent the credit balance that showed on the final bill. If you were not, you should ask them for it now.
Here's some more reading for you:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/reclaim-energy-bill-refunds

If you have been with the same supplier since you moved in, and your assertions are correct, then your bill would have been in credit when you agreed the revised monthly payment.
Perhaps part of the reason the amount was reduced so significantly was because the supplier is now using that accrued credit balance to fund your current usage.
Alternatively, you could have asked for the credit back, but your monthly payments would be higher, but not as high as originally set.
Heres some reading for you that will explain that principle further
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/lower-energy-direct-debits

Obviously if you are using less electricity now than before (you indicate you are now spending £400 a year on an alternative fuel instead), then you should have let the supplier know that, and they would have been able to consider revising your monthly payments accordingly. They would not know you had changed your heating system unless you tell them.

imho

If you had logged into Scottish Power Web page it is on there telling you there is a cheaper tariff. You don't have to look up different tariffs it will tell you if there is a cheaper tariff on your account page.

macman

Did you switch from E7 to single rate when you changed to oil. If not then you are paying about 250% more than you need to for your peak rate electricity. If SP have twigged this, then yes, your bill could well come down by more than 30%.
Oil costs more than E7 cheap rate.