What happens if you can't afford to pay?

QrizB

greyteam1959 said:

wild666 said:

LADYXXMACBETH said:

I'm concerned coming towards this winter what happens if I can't pay. 
I'm already struggling to afford my £228 DD and it will go up in October. 
I'm assuming that they would force me to have a prepayment meter put in, but what happens when you can't put money into it? Do you just go without? 
What happens when you don't put money into it? Where does the debt go? If it goes to a debt collection agency and you're already in debt then it won't get paid. 
It's slightly hypothetical, but I think it could be a reality for some come this winter. 

Do you leave loads of appliances in standby mode? There are only three that need to be on 24/7 and they are the fridge, freezer and router everything else can be switched off at the socket when not in use, even the cooker and washing machine if you can access the sockets and the microwave if you have one they are all using vampire power. I'm saving £18 per month by switching everything not in use off at the socket. Leave nothing plugged in that you aren't using and you will soon see the savings.

In the case of gas try lowering the temperatures on the boiler to 50 degrees for water and 55 degrees for heating and turning down the thermostat to 18 degrees, this step might have to be done by lowering the thermostat by one degrees per week until you get to 18 degrees or lower in a well insulated home.

People say it's only a few pounds here and there by turning appliances off but the savings do mount up over the year if you want to save money.

You say you are saving £18 per month by turning off everything at the socket !!
I don't believe your figures.

@wild666 has been through his figures several times and they seem to hold together.

£18 per month is roughly 2kWh per day, a baseload reduction of 90 watts or so. One badly-behaved appliance would be enough.

MWT

QrizB said:

One badly-behaved appliance would be enough.

... and personally I'd rather find that one and then not have the irritations of turning all the rest off each time...

Could probably achieve a very high percentage of the saving with minimal changes in behaviour so it is well worth people spending the time to discover the rogues in the mix...

LADYXXMACBETH

Gerry1 said:

LADYXXMACBETH said:

I can just about afford my bill at the moment, but genuinely come winter I don't know what I'll do. 
I've already turned my heating down to 14c since Jan, don't turn on lights in the evening and I just think it's going to be hell for a lot of people. 
There's no sign of any help at all. 

As previously suggested, did you contact Citizens Advice to check that you're getting all the benefits to which you are entitled?

I do get it all in my UC