Facing a tight budget

Robbie64

calleyw said:

I think they are wrong about the water bill nearly at £59 a month.  Two people in one house and I pay £21 a month water bill over 12 months.  It use to be that you could change to meter and if its costing you more you can change back with the first year.  If they can't fit a meter then do a some sort of calculation of how much one person uses.

Yours

Calley x

The traditional way of working out water charges is based on the rateable value of the property. Rates are an old concept that have not been in use since 1990 (they went when the Community Charge was introduced). However unless the property is metered the water company has to base the water charges on what the rateable value of the property would have been in 1990 (this includes properties built after 1990!). £59 a month does sound an awful lot though.

See https://www.unitedutilities.com/my-account/your-bill/rateable-value-explained/ for a more in-depth explanation.

calleyw

Robbie64 said:

The traditional way of working out water charges is based on the rateable value of the property. Rates are an old concept that have not been in use since 1990 (they went when the Community Charge was introduced). However unless the property is metered the water company has to base the water charges on what the rateable value of the property would have been in 1990 (this includes properties built after 1990!). £59 a month does sound an awful lot though.

See https://www.unitedutilities.com/my-account/your-bill/rateable-value-explained/ for a more in-depth explanation.

I am well aware of the difference between water rates and water meters and how they are charged. So not sure of the point of your post.  I had guessed the OP was on water rates as it stated in the first post the water company said if they changed to a meter it would cost them more.  Hence why I said I don't believe that if the OP lives on there own.

I mentioned a calcuation about if they CAN'T fit a meter and that has nothing to do with info you provided.  As there is average that they believe people use per day.  So that is how they work it out.  My bill has shown a graph of my usage against the average usage.  Which in my area is 181L per person.

When I last had water rates it was over 15 years ago and one bedroom flat was less than £250 a year. And did not think water bills had gone up that much. The op is paying nearly £600 a year for water.  So unless the op has a swimming pool or massive garden they keep watering they will be saving money.

Yours

Calley x

poppy12345

calleyw said:

I think they are wrong about the water bill nearly at £59 a month.  Two people in one house and I pay £21 a month water bill over 12 months.  It use to be that you could change to meter and if its costing you more you can change back with the first year.  If they can't fit a meter then do a some sort of calculation of how much one person uses.

Yours

Calley x

There's 2 of us in my house too and my monthly water DD is £22 and i'mn not on a meter either. I could probably reduce that if i changed to a meter but i'm scared it will increase so i haven't changed for this reason.

I agree £59 is a lot of money for someone that lives alone.

RobM99

Some water companies have an on-line calculator. e.g. how many baths a week, how many times does the washer get used, etc.   Really simple to do, and an on-screen answer result. Well worth a try - what can you lose?

Irenadler

sheramber said:

What would your dog's annuaL vacs cost?
I do not routinely treat my dogs for fleas. I have only had to  treat them twice in 40 years of dog ownership. Once when they picked them up from a visit to  friend's house and once when they picked them up in a holiday home.
So I only treat them when needed.
Worming tablets can be bought cheaper online than from a ver, unless you need a prescription one.
An annual consultation is given as part of th vacs appointment

So, is £15  worth it?

Hello Sheramber
Thank you that's a very good point. I have mulled it over as follows:

My vet charged £46 for the vaccination booster in 2018; they then suggested a monthly plan which could work out cheaper and include flea and worm treatment drops which I apply monthly (collecting 4 months supply at a time, 3 times a year) and also pays for one consultation fee if she has any problems per year. This started at £13 per month from 2018, and then £14 in 2019, and now just increased to £15 per month. I thought it might be a more cost effective way of keeping her healthy. In the past she has had itchy skin problems which I used to get medication for (at over £50 per month).

The vet felt that she had a dust mite allergy, which is why my water and fuel bills are high, I make sure all bedding and throws are washed frequently at a high temperature, and this unfortunately includes using condenser drier to make sure any survivors are killed off if they survive the washing machine. I also hoover the furniture, bed, soft furnishings as well as the floors and carpets. Starting to sound a bit obsessive there....?

The allergy meds were funded by pet insurance, after I paid £50 excess, each year. One year I over-ordered her medication somehow, and under-ordered the next lot and the insurers refused to fund her medication. I had inadvertently gone under the set amount that she qualified for, for medication costs. So I was still paying insurance for her, still paying her meds, and her vaccination, flea and worm treatments. So the pay plan seemed the better option! I don't pay pet insurance now as her age bars her from getting any - I was so fed up that her existing insurers' wouldn't pay for her medication any more that I stopped using them. I thought I could just do the pay plan at the vet's instead, and pay for any additional costs by saving up for her. That has not panned out....

I had to stop paying her meds when I had no income. Worried myself to death over it and laundried & cleaned up a storm. Strangely though, around the same time I stopped using animal products, including dairy, her allergy symptoms stopped. I used to give her a treat of a little bit of milk which she loved (I know, spoiling her), cheese, especially to persuade her to take her tablets, and when I no longer gave her dairy, she stopped itching and scratching!

I still keep on top of the laundering just in case it comes back, which doesn't help my bills, but I think I am a bit phobic now about keeping the dust down for her... I think about the irony of feeding her dairy (cheese) to encourage her to take her allergy tablets!!
I honestly think it was the dairy rather than the dust that was giving her the itchies. I do also get the room treatment flea killer from the vet too (Indorex I think it's called) as I hate the idea of any of them in the place. Gives me the itches just thinking about it.
Sorry for the long post but I am really mulling it over. To answer your question:

So £15 x 12 months = £180 a year. If her vaccination is say £50 now (not sure but I could ask them), that's £130 for the rest. It's about £30 for one consult e.g. checking her teeth and overall health. So the remaining £100 is flea and worm drops, plus one Indorex treatment of the home per year (it is supposed to last a year) - or £8.33 a month. I just did a quick google and the cheapest I saw was £8.99, or £11.99 from one of the larger pet chain stores. So if I go for the £12 one, that's £88 for just her drops. Hang on in there, nearly done, she gets Privinox spot on drops, and another google £19.94 for 4 months large dog (4 pipettes), or just under a £5 a month. £19.94 on a vet on-line site = 3 x 19.94 for a year's treatment = £59.82. To add it all up: £50 approx vaccination, £59.82 flea/worm drops, £30 consult fee/check up when she's vaccinated, £11.99 Indorex flea spray for the house = £151.81!

Leaving aside whether she should have monthly treatment of flea/worm drops that means I could actually save £28.19 every year. I think I would be a bit phobic about stopping her flea/worm drops altogether (that is my own issues again), but maybe if I just did her treatment almost bi-monthly, 6-8 treatments instead of 12, starting in spring each year instead, that would make sure she's ok and my anxiety wouldn't be too bad about it. That would add at least another £20 saving on top, or £131.82 costs a year.

Total savings = £48.18
Thank you Sheramber you have really made me use my brain properly and weigh it up carefully. I think I will cancel the plan and only buy her drops for 8 treatments a year, pay the vaccination at whatever price it is, and the consult, but shop around to get best price on her drops and the Indorex...
That's given me an immediate saving of £15 per month!

calleyw

poppy12345 said:

There's 2 of us in my house too and my monthly water DD is £22 and i'mn not on a meter either. I could probably reduce that if i changed to a meter but i'm scared it will increase so i haven't changed for this reason.

I agree £59 is a lot of money for someone that lives alone.

Sorry Poppy I forgot the magic words i am ON a meter.  So not sure you would save money.  And I use below the average for a two person hold per day.  I use approx 122 litres a day for the household and in my area the average usage for one person per day is 181L or 301L for 2 people.

Yours

Calley x

Irenadler

calleyw said:

I think they are wrong about the water bill nearly at £59 a month.  Two people in one house and I pay £21 a month water bill over 12 months.  It use to be that you could change to meter and if its costing you more you can change back with the first year.  If they can't fit a meter then do a some sort of calculation of how much one person uses.

Yours

Calley x

Hi Calleyw
Thank you, I will double check it again, I did a long post about my dog and her allergy, and I think it's because of that I do a lot of laundry and cleaning that costs are higher than they should be. I read somewhere that if you have an allergic child you can get help, but I don't think this applies to dogs....!

Maybe it also varies from area to area as well? When I told the lady at the other end of the line my average usage on the phone, she went very quiet for a while, and just when I was about to ask her if she was still there, she said I'd be better off not having a meter....

Cheers for the push though, I will check again...

Irenadler

calcotti said:

Irenadler said... I don't get ESA because I do own my home now (mortgage paid off thank goodness). 

Home ownership has no relevance to ESA, perhaps you don’t meet the NI contribution requirements. However, as poppy said, if you did get ESA it would simply be deducted from UC so there would be no overall gain.

Hello Calcotti
Ah, I thought it was the home that disqualified me, thank you. I think you are right there, so I will stick with UC and hope to God I will be earning my own income soon....

Irenadler

whizzywoo said:

I would definitely look at reducing your House and Contents insurance.  I managed to get ours reduced from over £30 per month to £13.44 per month, mainly by knocking off the Accidental Damage cover.  Try using the Comparison Sites for some quotes.  Depends on where you live of course.

Your Water Bill does seem high.  We pay £49.37 per month over 10 months not on a meter, in Lancashire - don't know if water rates vary depending on where you live.

Hello whizzywoo
I like your cute avatar picture, yes, H&C I feel are needed for my own peace of mind if nothing else. £13.44 is really great, but, there are certain reasons I feel I need the fullest cover. However you are right I need to shop around on those comparison sites because I can't remember the last time I compared prices. It's all too easy to let the renewals automatically come and go when you are having a struggle coping with things. I had the 'I know I should deal with it, but, at least I have it covered' mindset...

On the water bill, I have been busy and will update in a bit on that, thank you. 

pallyman

Hi Irenadler,If you are out of contract with your Broadband you could make a big saving there.