Raiven, my storage heaters come on for about 1000 hours each per year. Multiply 1000 by the input rating of your storage heater, and you'll get a reasonable estimate of its consumption.
To go from around 230kWh to 1196kWh without any visible change in usage (ie I haven't added the rest of the flats in the block to my meter) surely is a bit ridiculous?
It is ridiculous, but the ridiculous bit is the original usage of around 1.3kWh per day for heating in winter as this simply isn't enough to heat a flat, particularly when it is charging up a storage heater which will be leaking heat all day, it's far too low, particularly if the flat is still warm at the end of day.
Unless your flat is something exceptional like these ultra-insulated, zero emission new builds, my starting point would be that there is a problem with your previous meter readings.
Hi Jonesya
No, the meter has not been replaced. I've owned the flat 5 years and the previous owner had it from a new-build in 1981. There has only ever been that one meter, as far as I know. My readings are consistent - one every three months. This is the first time there has ever been a problem.
If the meter has *never* been replaced in 36 years of the flat's existence, it's conceivably developed a fault.
I'm waiting to hear from EDF about an engineer visit. They've acknowledged that the recent reading is "inconsistent with historical billing / comsumption". If they can provide a good reason, I'm happy to pay for any backlog of incorrectly recorded use to the time I bought the place, but I find it extremely unlikely....
CONCLUSION:
Thanks everyone for your replies. I've finally spoken to the Complex Metering Team who have agreed that there is a problem with the meter and it needs replacing. Not the problem I'd hoped for, but it seems you were all correct. The meter has been under-registering my consumption since 2013
Apparently this meter was fitted in 2008. Usage going back that far - before I owned the flat - was consistent with the most recent readings (ie higher than I've been used to). The guy explained that about half-way through the useful life of the meter, it slows down - therefore my early usage was under-recorded. Something about a spate of power cuts early this year has kick-started it and it is now over-recording the usage.
End result: They are fitting a new meter on 2nd July. I've had to pay the bill but am assured that they will keep an eye on the new meter to ensure it's recording correctly. I can submit monthly readings if I want, to give me peace of mind and ensure no surprises.
Once I got through to the Complex Metering Team they were very helpful and made allowances for the fact I'm useless on the phone; speaking slowly, answering my endless questions, repeating as necessary. He even talked me through the maths covering 10 years of usage. Future billing will be set at a DD I can afford, then can be predicted once we have a year's usage on the new meter.
Feeling much happier about this now. It's definitely going in my book - Triumphs of One Autistic Woman Against The World!
(Also, there was an error on the bill which meant the first 6 months were included twice. So the bill isn't £500, it's £300 for June 2017-June 2018 which is much more reasonable)
Replies
It is ridiculous, but the ridiculous bit is the original usage of around 1.3kWh per day for heating in winter as this simply isn't enough to heat a flat, particularly when it is charging up a storage heater which will be leaking heat all day, it's far too low, particularly if the flat is still warm at the end of day.
Unless your flat is something exceptional like these ultra-insulated, zero emission new builds, my starting point would be that there is a problem with your previous meter readings.
Was the meter(s) replaced at some point in 2017?
No, the meter has not been replaced. I've owned the flat 5 years and the previous owner had it from a new-build in 1981. There has only ever been that one meter, as far as I know. My readings are consistent - one every three months. This is the first time there has ever been a problem.
If the meter has *never* been replaced in 36 years of the flat's existence, it's conceivably developed a fault.
I'm waiting to hear from EDF about an engineer visit. They've acknowledged that the recent reading is "inconsistent with historical billing / comsumption". If they can provide a good reason, I'm happy to pay for any backlog of incorrectly recorded use to the time I bought the place, but I find it extremely unlikely....
Thanks everyone for your replies. I've finally spoken to the Complex Metering Team who have agreed that there is a problem with the meter and it needs replacing. Not the problem I'd hoped for, but it seems you were all correct. The meter has been under-registering my consumption since 2013
Apparently this meter was fitted in 2008. Usage going back that far - before I owned the flat - was consistent with the most recent readings (ie higher than I've been used to). The guy explained that about half-way through the useful life of the meter, it slows down - therefore my early usage was under-recorded. Something about a spate of power cuts early this year has kick-started it and it is now over-recording the usage.
End result: They are fitting a new meter on 2nd July. I've had to pay the bill but am assured that they will keep an eye on the new meter to ensure it's recording correctly. I can submit monthly readings if I want, to give me peace of mind and ensure no surprises.
Once I got through to the Complex Metering Team they were very helpful and made allowances for the fact I'm useless on the phone; speaking slowly, answering my endless questions, repeating as necessary. He even talked me through the maths covering 10 years of usage. Future billing will be set at a DD I can afford, then can be predicted once we have a year's usage on the new meter.
Feeling much happier about this now. It's definitely going in my book - Triumphs of One Autistic Woman Against The World!