Servern trent payment plan

mrskint29

Im on universal credit, and on the big difference scheme for over 5 years and 2 addresses now...

My monthly payment plan has only once been over £6, was around £5.70 last month,

My bill is £53 this year

They just upped my plan to £11.07 for next 10month til April 27 on this bill now, i called them (£7 for a 15min call 🤔) ive been told if i pay the balance off of £53 i wont have to pay again on this bill

Surely they cant tax me for being poor and expect £110 over 10months rather than £53 today?

victor2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6676468/servern-trent-payment-plan

Do you have a meter or not? Those costs seem very low, but it depends on your circumstances. Fixed annual charges would normally exceed that. If you can post suitably redacted details of your latest bill or statement, somebody may be able to explain it.

mrskint29

Thanx victor2 for your time

I dont have a meter, i live alone so not much usage anyway, it was few years back but think my monthly was around £40 a month before i got put forward with big difference scheme (certainly is a difference)

Severn trent updated its website last year sometime and the info on my account page is very simple now

What do you need from the bill?

Although as you can see, its not the amount thats the issue, its the fact i went to make my monthly payment and saw it'd jumped, when i checked my ST account the payment plan is in place til April 27 of £11.07 but my debt for this period is £53. I got a email from them later confirming this is correct

But also saying if i cleared the £53 today i wouldn't have to pay again on the period

So either £11 a month for 10 months or one off £53. Im already over max my monthly budget

victor2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82072008#Comment_82072008

I'm not familiar with the Big Difference scheme, but maybe someone on here is and can enlighten you/us? Perhaps they've changed the amount of relief that you get, which has resulted in increased costs to you. I suspect that if you cleared the £53, you would still have to contribute something towards your ongoing "usage", even though there isn't a meter to record that.

mrskint29

You a star victor2 thanx

From what they said 53 and done til nxt year bill? Or their double cost payment plan as im poor

Heres the email…

We have checked your account with the Big Difference Scheme Team and can confirm that your current payment plan is correct.

As your property is unmetered, your water charges are calculated based on the property's Rateable Value (RV) rather than the amount of water used at the property. This is why your charges may appear higher than expected, as they are not linked to your actual water consumption.

If you were to have a water meter installed and are a low water user, your future bills could be lower, which may also reduce the amount required under any payment arrangement.

We would also like to clarify that the Big Difference Scheme has changed. Previously, the scheme provided assistance based on a percentage discount of eligible charges. However, the scheme now provides a fixed discount against your unmetered bill, which is why the level of support may differ from previous years.

In addition, your account currently shows a debit balance of £53.67 on your unmetered bill. If this debit can be cleared, you would not need to make any further payments until your next bill is issued, as the payment will be used towards your charges

victor2

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82072049#Comment_82072049

That kind of makes sense. In my experience Severn Trent bill every six months. Because of the changes to the Big Difference scheme, you were not paying enough, so your last statement had a debit balance of £53, which you now owe them. If you pay the £11 a month they are asking, you will clear that debt and contribute a little towards your costs for the next six months. So your next statement in six months will probably still have a debit balance on it. If you pay less than £11, you will not clear the current debt, so your next statement will have that plus your ongoing costs between now and then. If you clear it now, you will not owe them anything until you get the next statement with your costs incurred over the 6 months.

If you do ask them to install a water meter, your usage costs will almost certainly drop, but the fixed charges won't. You could talk to them about your options, but that involves a phone call, or they do use WhatsApp, which also requires a mobile number even though you can carry out the chats on a computer with internet access. Do you have a friend with a mobile with unlimited calls, that they might let you use to call Severn Trent? Although I would try emailing them first by replying to the email you've already received. If you can be calm with them without any hint of confrontation, that should get a better response. That's not always so easy in an email, so draft it first and read it several times before sending it and possibly get a friend to read through it as well.

They have been very helpful on the odd occasion I've had to call them.

Good luck with it. Hopefully somebody with a similar experience will see this and comment…

mrskint29

Cheers victor2

Like i say im skint and just want to pay what i owe, im not in a position to be paying anyone a bonus £5 each month towards a bill i dont have yet, Ill worry about next year, next year,

In my 5/6 years with ST on the big difference scheme ive never paid over £6 a month as they've always billed the debt, this doubling up is the first time ive seen this so needed someone advice,

Just seems like i was paying this £53 over the year @ £5.70, to stump this up to £11 is feeling like being taxed because i need a £50 debt on a payment plan

Im thinking a mate will lend me £50 and ill pay them back til November £10 per month and get a brake over xmas