British Gas Quote quadruple what I am currently paying

LocalJen

My husband and myself are both retired, over 70, and we live in a small 2 bedroom bungalow. We have been with British Gas for all our married life of 43 years. 

We are on their 'Simplicity Tariff' for gas and electricity,  which ends at the end of October.  We pay £95 p.m. by direct debit, which covers our annual spend of £1,140.

I have been alarmed at reports of annual costs doubling, so I went online to see what British Gas could offer us when our tariff comes to an end.  They can only offer us 1 ... a 'Green Tariff....' ... D.D. monthly payment required: £343.  That is an annual spend of £4116. This is almost quadruple what we pay now!!!! 

How do British Gas expect us pensioners on a fixed income to find an extra £248 p.m.? Surely this massive increase can't be right, or justified?!

I now don't know whether to swith now before my tariff ends  

dunstonh

I have been alarmed at reports of annual costs doubling

For some people, it is a lot more than doubling.  For example, if you were on a fixed tariff that missed the earlier increases and is expiring now then quadrupling could be closer to the mark.

That is an annual spend of £4116. This is almost quadruple what we pay now!!!! 

Which is in the expected ballpark

How do British Gas expect us pensioners on a fixed income to find an extra £248 p.m.? Surely this massive increase can't be right, or justified?!

It is both right and justified based on the current situation.  It is certainly uncomfortable and going to hurt but that is where we are at the moment.          

Many people are going to try and reduce their use over winter.  i.e. shave some hours off the central heating.  Drop it down a degree or two.    Be as efficient as possible on electric use.  Use alternative fuels, such as wood burners and so on.

People are making adjustments and plans.  For example, we have offered both sets of our parents to come to ours during the daytime so they can cut their heating and electric use down.   We will have 2 or 3 wood burners running during the day and they can keep warm at ours.      Maybe you could do something similar or go out more during the day to a pub, cafe or club.  Watch TV or read a book there and have the heating off at home whilst you do.

Cardew

If you post your annual consumption in kWh for both gas and electricity we can better advise.

However it is pretty certain you should not switch but stay on your present tariff until the end of October and then do nothing and you will be placed on BG's SVT(Standard Variable Tariff). There are no fixed tariffs that are presently cheaper than the SVT and what the Government will do about subsidies in the future is still to be decided.

jimjames

LocalJen said:

How do British Gas expect us pensioners on a fixed income to find an extra £248 p.m.? Surely this massive increase can't be right, or justified?!

On the plus side it looks like pensions could be going up by nearly 10% so your income won't be quite a fixed as you think. Still won't match the increase but more towards it.

littlemissbossy

We are 2 adults in a two bedroom bungalow. 

We have cut our consumption a lot since the end of last year but I think our annual energy bill by next April will be around the £3600 mark. Previously it was around £950pa. 

This is just sticking with the SVR

macman

Bear in mind that you will be getting a £400 rebate on your bill from October, and the Winter Fuel Payment of at least £250. If you are on Pension Credit or various other benefits, you'll get an additional £650 cost of living support. You also get the Pensioner Cost of Living payment of £300 on top of the WFP.  If you have any Disability Benefits, there's an extra £150.
Hopefully you have already received the Council Tax Rebate of £150, if in bands A to D?
So, that's a minimum support of £1,100, maybe more.
You don't detail your private pension arrangements, if any, but your state pension is not fixed and will increase by CPI in April '23, with the restoration of the triple lock. This will be as much as 10%, as noted above.
SVT energy prices are going up by as much as 82% under the new cap in October, but if you are on a cheap fix, this will be higher for you. However, it will not be quadrupling, so that either your usage is higher than your current DD is set to, or BG have overestimated your usage to produce that quote. Post your annual kWh usage on each fuel and proper advice can be given.
Finally, it has to be said that if you have been with BG since privatisation and never switched, then you have probably paid out thousands of pounds in higher tariffs, as BG have traditionally been one of the more expensive providers, Sadly there is nothing that can be done about that now.
For the immediate future, you best option is to do nothing and default to SVT under the price cap. Why are you considering switching before end of tariff? You will pay an exit fee and a higher fix rate immediately. There are no current caps that are less than SVT, and very few suppliers accepting new customers.

macman

It's worth pointing out that there are an estimated 800,000 eligible pensioners who are not claiming Pension Credit. Not only would they boost their pensions, but they'd gain an extra £650 Cost of Living support as well. Why is the gov't not writing to these people to urge them to apply?

Spoonie_Turtle

macman said:

It's worth pointing out that there are an estimated 800,000 eligible pensioners who are not claiming Pension Credit. Not only would they boost their pensions, but they'd gain an extra £650 Cost of Living support as well. Why is the gov't not writing to these people to urge them to apply?

Because the government doesn't know who qualifies until they apply.  They might have State pensions below the threshold but small private pensions just taking them over, or a partner's income taking them over.  The government don't advise about benefits, only design and administer them.  Plus current backlogs for Pension Credit are already around 6 months or more.

macman

Spoonie_Turtle said:

macman said:

It's worth pointing out that there are an estimated 800,000 eligible pensioners who are not claiming Pension Credit. Not only would they boost their pensions, but they'd gain an extra £650 Cost of Living support as well. Why is the gov't not writing to these people to urge them to apply?

Because the government doesn't know who qualifies until they apply.  They might have State pensions below the threshold but small private pensions just taking them over, or a partner's income taking them over.  The government don't advise about benefits, only design and administer them.  Plus current backlogs for Pension Credit are already around 6 months or more.

i get that, but in order to predict that figure of 800k, they must have data to produce such a number. Why not a general campaign to raise awareness?

QrizB

macman said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

macman said:

It's worth pointing out that there are an estimated 800,000 eligible pensioners who are not claiming Pension Credit. Not only would they boost their pensions, but they'd gain an extra £650 Cost of Living support as well. Why is the gov't not writing to these people to urge them to apply?

Because the government doesn't know who qualifies until they apply.  They might have State pensions below the threshold but small private pensions just taking them over, or a partner's income taking them over.  The government don't advise about benefits, only design and administer them.  Plus current backlogs for Pension Credit are already around 6 months or more.

i get that, but in order to predict that figure of 800k, they must have data to produce such a number. Why not a general campaign to raise awareness?

There is a campaign. I'm pretty sure heard a radio advert promoting it this morning.

[Deleted User]

LocalJen said:

My husband and myself are both retired, over 70, and we live in a small 2 bedroom bungalow. We have been with British Gas for all our married life of 43 years. 

We are on their 'Simplicity Tariff' for gas and electricity,  which ends at the end of October.  We pay £95 p.m. by direct debit, which covers our annual spend of £1,140.

I have been alarmed at reports of annual costs doubling, so I went online to see what British Gas could offer us when our tariff comes to an end.  They can only offer us 1 ... a 'Green Tariff....' ... D.D. monthly payment required: £343.  That is an annual spend of £4116. This is almost quadruple what we pay now!!!! 

How do British Gas expect us pensioners on a fixed income to find an extra £248 p.m.? Surely this massive increase can't be right, or justified?!

I now don't know whether to swith now before my tariff ends  

I could not find a tariff called Simplicity but I did find a one called 'Simply Fix Oct 22' which expires 31st October.  Is this the one?