Average Electricity Costs Poll

0rchidea · 13 May 2009 at 10:24AM

We went away for 48 hours at the weekend. I switched off everything except the fridge/freezer (2 of each), one phone, and the pump in the fish pond. All sockets were switched off, the gas boiler was off (just the pilot light left). Read both the meters. Arriving home, first thing, check the meters, gas stayed stationary - no change. Electric usage was 26 units - 13 per day!!

So, we went as normal on all elec for the next 48 hours - electric shower 3, washing m/c 2, dishwasher 2, oven 1, PC 2 days, tv 2 nights, kettle several times. Just normal usage. Reading was, for that 48 hours 34 - just 17 per day.

And no, nothing was left on over first reading, we went room to room and double checked - so what is going on???

Lotus-eater · 13 May 2009 at 11:47AM

Get a gadget that allows you to measure each appliances electricity usage, about £10.

marozasi · 27 May 2009 at 11:58PM

As the most of the people I spend around 35 pounds... That's too much for me...

justpaper · 30 May 2009 at 12:24AM

i think we sould all cook food out side in the summer with wood fire

knock up a mud oven lol

techmax76 · 30 May 2009 at 10:08AM

We use less than 20. I make sure that everything is turned off when not in use or if it can be unplugged from the switch much better.

Thanks.

nelly10 · 3 June 2009 at 4:37PM

Well, i'm officially freaking out!

I've just received my utility bills. For 1 month the electricity is £131.21 and the gas is £138.16.

We have 3 in the house. Small 3 bed council house. Heating hasnt been on for weeks and i have a gas cooker.

Problem is, i didnt give them an up to date meter reading when i changed company and my meter readings are actually higher than they think! So if i come clean and tell them the real meter readings i will end up paying higher.

What should i do? That amount is surely not normal. There is no way i can pay £270 a month on fuel!

techmax76 · 11 June 2009 at 6:07PM

Normally we spend less than [FONT=&quot]£[/FONT]20 a month for our electric bill. But this will change depends on the weather too. Or if the electric company also increase on the price.

MrsBartolozzi · 11 June 2009 at 6:25PM

nelly10 wrote: »

Well, i'm officially freaking out!

I've just received my utility bills. For 1 month the electricity is £131.21 and the gas is £138.16.

We have 3 in the house. Small 3 bed council house. Heating hasnt been on for weeks and i have a gas cooker.

Problem is, i didnt give them an up to date meter reading when i changed company and my meter readings are actually higher than they think! So if i come clean and tell them the real meter readings i will end up paying higher.

What should i do? That amount is surely not normal. There is no way i can pay £270 a month on fuel!

If you didn't give them an up to date reading you may be paying for a longer period than your bill. If for example the previous bill was estimated too low then a correct reading now would include the previous underestimate.
Can you find an old bill and check if it was estimated (usually an E by the reading) or an actual (A) or customer(C) reading. Use these readings and today's to work out how much you used in the time period between them. This will give a more accurate usage. If this number is still high then you will probably need to up your DD or cut down on what you use (or both).
If you find that you are paying for a previous estimated bill then you will obviously need to pay for what you have used. You can make this a bit easier on yourself by giving customer readings to the company at regular intervals, using a lower reading that you have, but for more units than you use (keep regular readings to see what you really use if you see what I mean) so in a few months you are back on track but don't need to pay in one fell swoop.
If you think there might be a fault with your meter then make a new thread and you will get tailor made advice for your problem.
HTH.
MrsB.

CarineG · 16 June 2009 at 12:41PM

I have been with Eon since I moved into my one bedroom flat last July.
I have been paying £20 a month for combined gas and electricity.
They have been sending me statements which clearly show that I am not paying enough monthly. However, they have failed to increase my direct debit or contact me to discuss it (despite stating it on their invoices/statements).

As of May 26th when I switched to N Power, I owe Eon £100 for electricity and £200 for gas!

Now, the scary thing is that I live on my own and I'm not at home during the day. I am alarmed by those figures.

Anyone living on their own and could share their monthly costs?
Also, what is the best way to check that I am not wasting energy?

E.ON_Company_Representative · 18 June 2009 at 3:22PM

Hi CarineG,

For new customers the Direct Debit is not reviewed until after 6 months, this is due to a lack of consumption data to base a review on.

The statements sent to you highlighted that you were underpaying, therefore you had the opportunity to contact us and discuss this at the time. Whilst your supplier has an obligation to review Direct Debits, you as a customer also share the responsibility of managing your energy costs.

On final bills balances owing are claimed in full via the Direct Debit set up, if you can not afford for these amounts to be claimed it is important you contact E.ON as soon as possible to ask them not to take the amounts.

At the same discuss with E.ON a payment arrangement that will help you clear the final balances in manageable amounts, we are only too happy to do this for you.

I’d also double check the bills to ensure accurate readings have been used and they’re correct.

All energy suppliers are obliged to provide energy efficiency advice to anyone who requests it, even if you’re not supplied by them. So if you would like help reducing and learning how to be energy efficient, the team at E.ON will be happy to provide assistance. The website also has some good interactive energy efficiency information. :money:

If you’d like the number for this team, just give me a shout.

Brian

Average Electricity Costs Poll

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