High standing charges for gas and electric.

TheMilkmansDad

I disagree at your argument of why you should pay less than someone with a larger property.

It costs the exact same to supply Buckingham Palace as it does to your house (assuming of course the palace has just the one meter...). That is an ongoing cost and should be the same for everyone.

There is competition from suppliers. It's just that at the moment they are all over the SVR standing charge costs. Historically, they have been below and one would hope that in time that will again be the case.

pochase

No idea where you get your figures. The highest standing charge for payment by direct debit is in the north West with 51.62p, that is £188.41 and not £300 for electricity.

EssexHebridean

pensioner2 said:

 Some very confused replies.   Pay the standing charge or be disconnected [the cost of making the connection has already happened].     In normal times there is competition to set the price.        I maintain that it is unfair that a single pensioner using £300 of electricity a year is required to pay the same standing charge [probably more than £300] as a large family using £3000 of electricity.    The comparison with a supermarket providing extra services is not valid. The supermarket pays for its goods to be delivered etc. and the cost of replacing the tills.    I do not have to pay an extra standing charge to a media  or phone company.   The standing charge cannot be justified unless there is competition from suppliers only charging for energy usage.

Could you explain to me how you think the energy you use gets from where it is generated, to your appliances? 

I would also be intrigued as to how you use only "£300 of electricity a year" - this is quite incredibly low...

pensioner2

My main point is that there should be no standing charge.   A supermarket does not charge for building the premises or cleaning and maintenance.   Every other business provides premises or services in the hope that they can make a profit by tempting you to use them rather than a competitor.

Ultrasonic

pensioner2 said:

 Some very confused replies.   Pay the standing charge or be disconnected [the cost of making the connection has already happened].     In normal times there is competition to set the price.        I maintain that it is unfair that a single pensioner using £300 of electricity a year is required to pay the same standing charge [probably more than £300] as a large family using £3000 of electricity.    The comparison with a supermarket providing extra services is not valid. The supermarket pays for its goods to be delivered etc. and the cost of replacing the tills.    I do not have to pay an extra standing charge to a media  or phone company.   The standing charge cannot be justified unless there is competition from suppliers only charging for energy usage.

Lots of good replies above explaining why the current system is fair, which I agree with a low energy user myself. I understand that you are not happy about the high costs currently, as most people aren't. Two things to note. Firstly, the large family you cited has a much larger energy bill than you because they use way more energy. They aren't somehow being shielded from high costs in a way that you aren't. Secondly, as a pensioner do note the extra government help that was announced recently. Do look into this properly and make sure you get all you are entitled to.

victor2

pensioner2 said:

My main point is that there should be no standing charge.   A supermarket does not charge for building the premises or cleaning and maintenance.   Every other business provides premises or services in the hope that they can make a profit by tempting you to use them rather than a competitor.

But you go to the business premises at your expense, or pay a delivery charge. They don't deliver to you for free!

GingerTim

pensioner2 said:

My main point is that there should be no standing charge.   A supermarket does not charge for building the premises or cleaning and maintenance.   Every other business provides premises or services in the hope that they can make a profit by tempting you to use them rather than a competitor.

A supermarket will certainly build premises costs into prices.

More importantly, your analogy doesn't really hold water and is a bit confused - a like-for-like comparison would be if Tesco provided the infrastructure to pipe milk directly into your home and out of your taps. 

BUFF

pensioner2 said:

My main point is that there should be no standing charge.   A supermarket does not charge for building the premises or cleaning and maintenance.   Every other business provides premises or services in the hope that they can make a profit by tempting you to use them rather than a competitor.

Yes, they do. It just isn't itemised on your invoices/receipts but it is built into the costs/selling prices.
The energy distribution networks are standalone companies though e.g. National Grid who then charge the energy suppliers for using their infrastructure/services.

MattMattMattUK

pensioner2 said:

 Some very confused replies.   Pay the standing charge or be disconnected [the cost of making the connection has already happened].     In normal times there is competition to set the price.        I maintain that it is unfair that a single pensioner using £300 of electricity a year is required to pay the same standing charge [probably more than £300] as a large family using £3000 of electricity.    The comparison with a supermarket providing extra services is not valid. The supermarket pays for its goods to be delivered etc. and the cost of replacing the tills.    I do not have to pay an extra standing charge to a media  or phone company.   The standing charge cannot be justified unless there is competition from suppliers only charging for energy usage.

The replies are not confused, although unfortunately you seem to be. The standing charge is there to covet the majority of the cost of maintaining the network, therefore it is fair that everyone connected to the network pays for it. 

If competition were operating normally prices would actually be higher, they are artificially held down at the moment because of the price cap.

pensioner2 said:

My main point is that there should be no standing charge. 

You do not want a service charge because you feel it will benefit you financially, you want to be subsidised by other people. That is not a position that can be rationally justified.

pensioner2 said:

A supermarket does not charge for building the premises or cleaning and maintenance.   Every other business provides premises or services in the hope that they can make a profit by tempting you to use them rather than a competitor.

The supermarket is a poor analogy as the supermarket is not connected directly to your home. If you have yourself disconnected from the energy grid and use LPG supplied via tank or bottle and generate your own electricity by some means then you will not have to pay the standing charge, although you would have to pay a delivery charge for the LPG or other fuel.

Astria

pensioner2 said:

My main point is that there should be no standing charge.   A supermarket does not charge for building the premises or cleaning and maintenance.   Every other business provides premises or services in the hope that they can make a profit by tempting you to use them rather than a competitor.

At one point in time there wasn't a standing charge, I'm sure you remember that time. They instead charged substantially more for the first X amount of units used than the rest, so it was still there but just under another guise. So the same as every other business.