Mandatory Card Meter - EXPENSIVE!

Nony_2

3 months ago I moved into rented accommodation of a small 2-bed flat and the electricity supply is via a private supplier; I buy £10 cards to feed the meter. As a pensioner, I restrict my usage to £3 a day, but this is not enough to adequately heat the place or prevent mould appearing regularly on walls and furniture.
There is no fixed heating: I use a dehumidifier every few days; a halogen heater as a direct source of heat; an oil-filled radiator to heat the air and occasional use of a towel rail in the bathroom. I try not to use any heating until late afternoon, but recently there have been several very cold, damp days when I have had to heat the place. I live very close to the sea, which is fantastic for views, but not so good for damp air!
I asked my landlord's representative if I could switch to a normal electricity meter, but he replied that the electricity has to be bought from this local office. My meter charges a standard 13.5 pence per unit, with no reduction in price for units over a certain number, as is usual for most providers.
Is it legal for someone to have a monopoly over the provision of power, please?
I would welcome any advice on this.
"Shivering" of Cornwall !

ukbill69

Its up to you the renter what you have, not the landlord.

Switch to edf energy, they will require you to be with them for 28 days. Then ring them up and say you want a credit metre, where they will bill you once a month by direct debit. Its totally free to change to.

You will also loose the 13.5p standing charge per day and your rates will be better to.

espresso

ukbill69 wrote: »

Its up to you the renter what you have, not the landlord.

Switch to edf energy, they will require you to be with them for 28 days. Then ring them up and say you want a credit metre, where they will bill you once a month by direct debit. Its totally free to change to.

You will also loose the 13.5p standing charge per day and your rates will be better to.

Did you actually read the post?

Nony

I would suggest that you check your tenancy agreement regarding the electricity supply and if have to use that supply, look into the possibility of using portable gas heaters for heating e.g. here

SwanJon

Nony wrote: »

3 months ago I moved into rented accommodation of a small 2-bed flat and the electricity supply is via a private supplier; I buy £10 cards to feed the meter.

What do you mean by a private supplier?

If the electricity comes from the grid, then your landlord cannot sell it to you for more than it costs him.

space_rider

Sounds like a land lord sub meter so you really have no say over it apart from finding somewhere else to live. There is a maximum that the land lord can resell it to you. If you check with energywatch they will tell you the maximum price.

Nony_2

Thank you for the replies, fellers.
Bill, I don't think you read my original post properly; there isn't a standing charge - the 13.5 pence is the price per unit of electricity.
Espresso: I discounted the idea of portable gas heaters as they are renowned for causing lots of condensation and my de-humidifier is already working very hard to take out the dampness in here. Also, there are many, many steps up to my place and so far, I have encountered lots of refusals from delivery drivers. Can't blame them, really, but neither can I carry gas refills up and down.
SwanJon and space rider: This is the problem as I see it - who supplies the electricity? My home and many others are owned by my landlord (a property company) but all are leasehold; the ground is separately owned by someone else. Card meters are fitted and we all have to buy our cards from an office in the area. I heard that last year, there was a court case about the high cost of the electricity; the outcome of that was that the price had to come down and the supply office had to be open a certain number of hours every day.
I think you are right, space rider, in that it is a landlord sub meter, so I'm stuck with it. Moving isn't really an option - it was difficult enough finding this place! (My dog is usually the sticking point!)
I shall check with Energywatch as to the highest cost of electricity, but I suspect that the 13.5 pence per unit will be allowable, don't you? :rolleyes:
Thank you all again. xx

barbie_babe

What part of cornwall are you in as my gas man is very good about carry gas bottles to were you want them. A calor gas fire heats a room up in no time at all and cheaper than eletric.

espresso

Nony wrote: »

I shall check with Energywatch as to the highest cost of electricity, but I suspect that the 13.5 pence per unit will be allowable, don't you? :rolleyes:
Thank you all again. xx

You should find more details here.

Plenty of documents to read!

Terrylw1

Hi,

This is private submetering.

Your LL will have an incoming supply which he is liable to pay. Your tenancy agreement will reflect this.

He may also have several private meters to these properties off one meter.

This type of metering is completely private and owned by your LL (as fitted by his electrician)

So, only the LL can hold an electricity supply contract since meter points determine an incoming supply.

I suggest you check, as others have states, the ceiling unit price that the LL can sell on the elec for.

Beyond that, there is little you can do.

You could:

- make sure your LL is picking the cheapest elec Suppliers to pass on discounts to the tenants but that would depend on your relationship with him. I don't mean calculate anything but more mention it occassionally.

- you could get the LL to fit a new supply. This will costs him/her hundreds of pounds though. I may also not be possible to joint just to your property without dealing with the others hence making it more costly to the LL.

Submetering sadly is a poor way to handle utilities thesedays.