My mother's energy bills

kazwookie

You need to make sure the meters are read by you or someone you trust monthly, and the correct figures entered on the suppliers web site.

Do not rely on the supplier sending a 'meter reader round'.

Other things to check, how often is the hot water on?

Joyful

I would suggest getting something like a Hive system. That way you can monitor from your mobile. You can also check and see how long the house holds its heat for if the heating is reduced. You can also increase or decrease the temp when out and about.

Georget79

Brie said:

The reason they are asking for so much money is they are greedy.  They will say that the increases to the DD are to "ensure you don't get into debt" and "to safe guard you".  Which is for the most part poppycake.  

What you need to do is look at the actual usage over the last year and then calculate what you will need to pay in Oct.  And then, once you have taken account of the current credit on the account, see what monthly amount will cover that.  There is absolutely no reason for you to pay them anything extra if you don't want to.  Tell them what your mom's DD will be and stick to that amount.  If they seem unwilling to cooperate then you need to ask to be put on a DD that pays for your exact current use.  That means every month will be different but at least you will only be paying for what is used, not some made up number.

I've needed to do similar as my energy provider was providing an inaccurate estimate based solely on our use from last Jan/Feb without accounting for the lower use in the summer.  

Thankyou, great straight talking advice! I've just got off the phone to usswitch who have also said she should only be paying £313 per month not £417 from their calculations.

So with this, and the energy saving tips I've learned, it's looking a little better. I will also keep an eye on actual usage and follow your advice. Cheers! 

BUFF

Georget79 said:

macman said:

Temp varies between 20C and 30C?! Tell us you're not serious!
20C is a reasonable average. 21C is about the max that most people are comfortable with. If you are seriously turning it up to 30C, then you've answered your own question: it will never achieve that temp, but in trying to do so the boiler would be running full bore all the time. Is it on 24/7 in the heating season?
She will get £400 credited back on her electricity bills in 6 bites from October, plus the usual WFP and the additional pensioner allowance., so £500  if 77. Plus £150 CT credit on bands A to D.
If she has dementia, then she may count as SMI and so can be disregarded for C Tax, which means that you will get a 25% SPD discount, if there are no other adult residents.
Check the loft insulation is up to standard, very easy to fix if not.

I've just checked and the radiators don't even come on unless the dial is past 25. Would this indicate a faulty boiler? I'll be giving them a call.

Or a faulty thermostat. As mentioned already if you can get some form of thermometer to verify what the actual room temperature(s) is/are that will help narrow things down.

Can you say what exact make/model of boiler, programmer, room thermostat & if TRVs are fitted?

Georget79

BUFF said:

Georget79 said:

macman said:

Temp varies between 20C and 30C?! Tell us you're not serious!
20C is a reasonable average. 21C is about the max that most people are comfortable with. If you are seriously turning it up to 30C, then you've answered your own question: it will never achieve that temp, but in trying to do so the boiler would be running full bore all the time. Is it on 24/7 in the heating season?
She will get £400 credited back on her electricity bills in 6 bites from October, plus the usual WFP and the additional pensioner allowance., so £500  if 77. Plus £150 CT credit on bands A to D.
If she has dementia, then she may count as SMI and so can be disregarded for C Tax, which means that you will get a 25% SPD discount, if there are no other adult residents.
Check the loft insulation is up to standard, very easy to fix if not.

I've just checked and the radiators don't even come on unless the dial is past 25. Would this indicate a faulty boiler? I'll be giving them a call.

Or a faulty thermostat. As mentioned already if you can get some form of thermometer to verify what the actual room temperature(s) is/are that will help narrow things down.

Can you say what exact make/model of boiler, programmer, room thermostat & if TRVs are fitted?

Yes I'll get a thermostat to check the actual room temperature. The boiler is a Potterton Promax combi HE plus. The thermostat is just a box on the wall with a dial, no logo. It does appear there are TRV's on the radiator. There is dials to turn up the heat on them, although having had a look online I see there are some quite intelligent TRV's so not sure they are the same thing you are referring to. 

Imperial1847

Brie said:

The reason they are asking for so much money is they are greedy.  They will say that the increases to the DD are to "ensure you don't get into debt" and "to safe guard you".  Which is for the most part poppycake.  

What you need to do is look at the actual usage over the last year and then calculate what you will need to pay in Oct.  And then, once you have taken account of the current credit on the account, see what monthly amount will cover that.  There is absolutely no reason for you to pay them anything extra if you don't want to.  Tell them what your mom's DD will be and stick to that amount.  If they seem unwilling to cooperate then you need to ask to be put on a DD that pays for your exact current use.  That means every month will be different but at least you will only be paying for what is used, not some made up number.

I've needed to do similar as my energy provider was providing an inaccurate estimate based solely on our use from last Jan/Feb without accounting for the lower use in the summer.  

EDF are basing our monthly DD on estimates based on previous use, we've done many things in the interim to cut down but they say our next review is not due until August 2023!!!!

BUFF

Georget79 said:

BUFF said:

Georget79 said:

macman said:

Temp varies between 20C and 30C?! Tell us you're not serious!
20C is a reasonable average. 21C is about the max that most people are comfortable with. If you are seriously turning it up to 30C, then you've answered your own question: it will never achieve that temp, but in trying to do so the boiler would be running full bore all the time. Is it on 24/7 in the heating season?
She will get £400 credited back on her electricity bills in 6 bites from October, plus the usual WFP and the additional pensioner allowance., so £500  if 77. Plus £150 CT credit on bands A to D.
If she has dementia, then she may count as SMI and so can be disregarded for C Tax, which means that you will get a 25% SPD discount, if there are no other adult residents.
Check the loft insulation is up to standard, very easy to fix if not.

I've just checked and the radiators don't even come on unless the dial is past 25. Would this indicate a faulty boiler? I'll be giving them a call.

Or a faulty thermostat. As mentioned already if you can get some form of thermometer to verify what the actual room temperature(s) is/are that will help narrow things down.

Can you say what exact make/model of boiler, programmer, room thermostat & if TRVs are fitted?

Yes I'll get a thermostat to check the actual room temperature. The boiler is a Potterton Promax combi HE plus. The thermostat is just a box on the wall with a dial, no logo. It does appear there are TRV's on the radiator. There is dials to turn up the heat on them, although having had a look online I see there are some quite intelligent TRV's so not sure they are the same thing you are referring to. 

Is there a TRV fitted in the same room as the wall thermostat? (this would generally be considered a bad thing as they can conflict - if there is open the TRV to max)
What setting are the TRVs generally set at?

TheBanker

Georget79 said:

TheBanker said:

Are you heating the whole house? If so, is it possible to turn off the radiators in un-used rooms and just heat the room your mum is in at the time, and her bedroom before bedtime if needed?

And yes, as the poster above suggested, look into whether there is any funding available to improve your insulation. If you have an open chimney then the heat will all be going up there rather than staying in the room. I have no idea what support is available in Scotland but your mother's condition may open up additional sources of help. Your energy supplier might be able to make some suggestions, have you had a look on their website? Or your local council, or the Citizens Advice?

Do you/your mother own the house, or is it rented (and if so, is it from the council/HA or a private landlord)?

Yes I will make sure everywhere else is off. I've also just realised the radiators don't even come on until the dial is at 25 so this explains a lot. I'll need to find out what's going on.

Does it feel like it's 25 when you're in the house? That would be like a warm summers day. 

Georget79

BUFF said:

Georget79 said:

BUFF said:

Georget79 said:

macman said:

Temp varies between 20C and 30C?! Tell us you're not serious!
20C is a reasonable average. 21C is about the max that most people are comfortable with. If you are seriously turning it up to 30C, then you've answered your own question: it will never achieve that temp, but in trying to do so the boiler would be running full bore all the time. Is it on 24/7 in the heating season?
She will get £400 credited back on her electricity bills in 6 bites from October, plus the usual WFP and the additional pensioner allowance., so £500  if 77. Plus £150 CT credit on bands A to D.
If she has dementia, then she may count as SMI and so can be disregarded for C Tax, which means that you will get a 25% SPD discount, if there are no other adult residents.
Check the loft insulation is up to standard, very easy to fix if not.

I've just checked and the radiators don't even come on unless the dial is past 25. Would this indicate a faulty boiler? I'll be giving them a call.

Or a faulty thermostat. As mentioned already if you can get some form of thermometer to verify what the actual room temperature(s) is/are that will help narrow things down.

Can you say what exact make/model of boiler, programmer, room thermostat & if TRVs are fitted?

Yes I'll get a thermostat to check the actual room temperature. The boiler is a Potterton Promax combi HE plus. The thermostat is just a box on the wall with a dial, no logo. It does appear there are TRV's on the radiator. There is dials to turn up the heat on them, although having had a look online I see there are some quite intelligent TRV's so not sure they are the same thing you are referring to. 

Is there a TRV fitted in the same room as the wall thermostat? (this would generally be considered a bad thing as they can conflict - if there is open the TRV to max)
What setting are the TRVs generally set at?

No TRV in the hall where the thermostat is. The rest are set differently, living room is max, as is her bedroom. Set to zero all upstairs, full in kitchen and bathroom we change it about. 

Georget79

TheBanker said:

Georget79 said:

TheBanker said:

Are you heating the whole house? If so, is it possible to turn off the radiators in un-used rooms and just heat the room your mum is in at the time, and her bedroom before bedtime if needed?

And yes, as the poster above suggested, look into whether there is any funding available to improve your insulation. If you have an open chimney then the heat will all be going up there rather than staying in the room. I have no idea what support is available in Scotland but your mother's condition may open up additional sources of help. Your energy supplier might be able to make some suggestions, have you had a look on their website? Or your local council, or the Citizens Advice?

Do you/your mother own the house, or is it rented (and if so, is it from the council/HA or a private landlord)?

Yes I will make sure everywhere else is off. I've also just realised the radiators don't even come on until the dial is at 25 so this explains a lot. I'll need to find out what's going on.

Does it feel like it's 25 when you're in the house? That would be like a warm summers day. 

To achieve that, it would need to be set to 30 and also have the small electric heater on in the living room. So no, 25 is nowhere near a warm summers day. I've got the chimney blocker arriving today, will be interesting to see the difference it makes