Energy bills tripled for the elderly

andyhawes

Having visited my worried elderly mother today, her energy company have emailed telling her that her current energy bill is expiring at the end of May.

She’s currently paying £75 a month to Scottish Power for combined gas& electricity bills and is £116 in credit.

The new “deal” Scottish Power are offering is based on her overall annual costs tripling! Going from around £800/year to over £2400, and the monthly direct debit increasing to £220 !!

I know, and have seen all the news reports about the energy crisis, but three times the price seems absolute daylight robbery!

I’ve currently advised her to do nothing and just revert to the standard variable rate, but does anyone else have any better suggestions, or similar experiences with your own or someone else’s energy bills?

molerat

Going from a pre Oct 21 fix to a current rate is going to be a big shock I am afraid.  I went from an accurate £82 pm fix to £210 pm SVR, a current "cheap" fix is around £290 pm.

Billxx

Alas this scenario is going to hit a huge number of people with expiring fixed deals.  This and other factors of the cost of living are going to throw many people onto the poverty line. it would not surprise me if there is widespread civil unrest. 

pochase

Same as @molerat I was on a fix until end of February, gas prices more than tripled, and electricity doubled.

 What is the cost/debit order for the SVT, that should also be on the email.

Suppliers have to inform you about the cheapest fixed tariff if you come off a fix, and people tend to stop reading shocked by the new prices.

andyhawes

I didn’t see the SVT rate, and to be fair I guess that could change between now and the end of the month but it’s very good point, I need to re check that.

Seems like a lose/lose scenario at the moment, especially for those on a limited income such as the small pension my mum is on, as there is nothing she can do to increase her income at this stage of her life.

pochase

andyhawes said:

I didn’t see the SVT rate, and to be fair I guess that could change between now and the end of the month but it’s very good point, I need to re check that.

Seems like a lose/lose scenario at the moment, especially for those on a limited income such as the small pension my mum is on, as there is nothing she can do to increase her income at this stage of her life.

No the SVT rate will not change (increase) until October. All suppliers are on the maximum they can charge - the CAP, so that is the most they can charge.

They are allowed to decrease it, but that is a nice dream.

andyhawes

I contacted Scottish Energy and they have told me the standard rates which are higher than my mums current rate but not that much more. Her monthly cost will go up from £75/month to around £109, until I guess October when it will rise again- just hoping for a miracle or a decent government intervention before then!

Ultrasonic

andyhawes said:

I contacted Scottish Energy and they have told me the standard rates which are higher than my mums current rate but not that much more. Her monthly cost will go up from £75/month to around £109, until I guess October when it will rise again- just hoping for a miracle or a decent government intervention before then!

Bear in mind that even the most pessimistic predictions we've seen so far wouldn't make the October increase match the figures you started the thread with.

Sterlingtimes

My 93-year-old mother will pay:

E.ON Economy 7 prices including VAT
Day 665 x 0.3315 = 220.44
Night 5268 x 0.1669 = 879.23
Standing charge 48.31 x 365 = 175.97
TOTAL £1,275.64

But she will get £300 Winter Fuel Payment, £150 savings via Council Tax and the £200 "loan". So her net annual expenditure will be £625, i.e. £52 a month.

BUFF

andyhawes said:

I know, and have seen all the news reports about the energy crisis, but three times the price seems absolute daylight robbery!

Unfortunately that's the reality. If I look at what I was paying at the start of 2021 & what I expect to be paying come the next October SVT change I fully expect to be at ~3x. 
& the energy companies will probably still be saying that at the SVT prices they are still losing money on domestic supply...

Tranboy

People need to take a bite of a reality sandwich. ....prices are going to go up in October , the time when we all start to use more energy, no government can or will intervene to any significant degree to help us out. It's going to hit a great many people as part of the cost of living crisis that is fuel..food and brexit combined.  It's going to be like a trip back to the 1970's that some of us lived through and many haven't so the easy credit of recent years has caused an unreality bubble of apparent wealth that will soon burst.....