Gas and Electric Prices

I've just reviewed my combined gas/electricity spending over the last ten years, having lived in the same 3 bed semi throughout that time. I have switched suppliers from time to time, always chasing the best deal. Here's how the results stack up....

FY02 £451
FY03 £317
FY04 £346
FY05 £441
FY06 £521
FY07 £778
FY08 £628
FY09 £761
FY10 £1172 I think this is just an accounting glitch, with poor estimates skewing the billing into the wrong year(s)
FY11 £796 This was the chilly winter and I think the low figure reflects a likely accounting glitch from FY10.
FY12 £943 We are currently in credit, having been over billed when we last changed suppliers in 2011.
 
My dual-fuel costs amount to a direct debit of £70 per month for a 2 bedroom mid-terrace house that's well insulated and double-glazed.

I work for a utility company and most of my day is spent in the field dealing with cases of illegal abstraction of electricity (and occasionally gas) as well as helping customers who are struggling to pay their bills. On that basis, here's a little advice:

Check with the likes of uswitch.com to find a better tariff.

If you're struggling to pay, contact the supplier straight away. There are a few things they can do to help.

Consider a pre-payment meter. They used to be incredibly expensive but now they're actually cheaper than paying in some other ways (like quarterly). The government leant on the suppliers a few years ago and reminded them that generally, the people who have pre-payment meters can't afford to pay higher charges!

Don't default on a direct debit... Ring the supplier and tell them that you need to pay a lower amount for a while. They'll generally be happy to accept something rather than nothing (although they'll probably recommend that you have a pre-payment meter fitted).

If you need to complain, mention the energy regulator and use words like; COMPLAINT, REGULATOR, OFGEM and DISPUTE... These words are flagged up in incoming emails and then passed a bit further up the chain. It's better to talk to the organ grinder than the monkey! :D
 
Great advice from Si. But I would offer a little caution about uswitch - and other comparison sites. Use them as a guide by all means but engage brain and do your own research. Speak to neighbours and friends as well.

Keep in mind how these comparison sites get paid - by encouraging people to switch via their site. Now ask yourself this, why, having completed the online form with your details, do they never tell you that you are with the cheapest? Even when you re-enter your details but substituting the supplier they just recommended?

And I'm also worried about people who look to switch due to poor service (usually their call centre experience) but seek out a new supplier based solely on price :thinking:

Speak to friends, colleagues, neighbours - in conjunction with checking out ?Which who have annual (or six monthly) customer satisfaction surveys.
 
2blue4u said:
And I'm also worried about people who look to switch due to poor service (usually their call centre experience) but seek out a new supplier based solely on price :thinking:
Click to expand...

This. Totally.

The actual difference in price between most of the suppliers standard products is negligible. You're talking not a lot more than £20 a year.

The claimed massive savings are usually when you are with one supplier on a standard product, and you move to a specific discounted/online product. But chances are your current supplier has one of these too.

Have a read up on which suppliers are head of the customer service tables... and also more importantly which are improving customer service massively.

Something to consider with larger vs smaller suppliers. The larger ones tend to have much better relationships with the meter operators and distribution companies. Often their specialist customer service teams will have key contacts with those companies and other larger suppliers. This makes it much easier to resolve problems correctly than it would a smaller supplier.

Another point about prices. And at risk of verging on politics here. There will be some price increases that are simply not related to the true cost of wholesale gas/elec. Suppliers are all being pressured into installing smart meters - and those things are not cheap. Not only the devices, but network infrastructure and IT systems. Now these are all expected to be funded by the suppliers, but in reality you know what that means now don't you?
 
I've switched quite a few times. The only supplier that actually offered anywhere near the calculated savings was Amerada. When I was with amerada I'd use uswitch etc and it would always tell me I had the cheapest, which I did. When they went bump and turned into powergen I switched quite a few times later and the savings offered when switching never really materialised. They were usually said to be about £200 a year but that was never the end experience. Mostly they all cost the same as each other.

I switched to Ebico year before last as they have flat rate tariffs, no standing charges, no differential charges for differing payment methods. They are not the absolute cheapest but I reckon they're close. Their billing partner is not averse to ramping up monthly payments unnecessarily however so I'm back to quarterly billing. Estimates are often 10% out which is how I think they keep on ramping the DD up as their estimate often goes another 10% onto the previous incorrect estimate the following year. Even if you submit meter readings they still want to increase your estimated usage year on year.
 
I've just had a letter from Scottish Hydo Electric to say that:

From June 1st 2012 we recommend that your new monthly payment should be £335.00, currently it's £203.00.

Based on your meter reading and our current prices we expect your annual energy cost to be £3144.07

At the moment you have a debit of £840.64 on your account so we expect the total cost for the year to be £4014.73 up to your next annual payment review. We'll be able to collect 12 payments, so we've divided the total cost by 12. This means your monthly payment needs to be £335.00 rounded up to the nearest pound.

This is electricity only. :bonk:
 
Last edited:
Blimey! That makes me feel better!!

I cant believe how prices vary so much-we all must use around the same amount of fuel(2 adults two kids) weird!!
 
stevetiler said:
Blimey!

I cant believe how prices vary so much-we all must use around the same amount of fuel(2 adults two kids) weird!!
Click to expand...

Maybe a better way to judge wether or not a certain supplier/area is more expensive would be to state actual units of electricity and cubic meters of gas used and then compare cost.

The variation of prices seems to me to be too large in some cases for it just to be a unit price issue.....probably more of how much each individual family uses dependent upon their lifestyles!
 
Asha said:
Maybe a better way to judge wether or not a certain supplier/area is more expensive would be to state actual units of electricity and cubic meters of gas used and then compare cost.

The variation of prices seems to me to be too large in some cases for it just to be a unit price issue.....probably more of how much each individual family uses dependent upon their lifestyles!
Click to expand...

Yes I think that must be right! The suppliers prices don't vary much in the grand scheme of things!
 
I dream of Uk prices again- I'm paying anywhere from 400 to 700 pounds (eq.) a month!!! There's no gas in Sweden so all the heating is electric.
 
stevetiler said:
Blimey! That makes me feel better!!

I cant believe how prices vary so much-we all must use around the same amount of fuel(2 adults two kids) weird!!
Click to expand...

Far from it.. kWh useage would be a better guide. It's all down to behaviour in terms of what is used how its used and for how long, throw in energy efficiency measures and comparative size of said 'equivalent' houses and you'd be onto a more far comparison rather than looking at dd amounts.
 
all of this is making me glad that my heating (and water heating for 2/3 of the year) is on a log burner (for which i get firewood free from work). We do have night storage as well but we only use them set on frost protection if we are away during the winter.

I'm paying about 30 quid a month in lectrickery , which is mainly the oven/freezer/dishwasher/washing machine/tumble drier and sparing use of an imersion heater when it is too hot to run the fire.

we have baths in the winter when water heating is free (water is also free where I am), and showers in the summer.
 
Last edited:
Mine is on direct debit for 80 pounds a month. Thats for a 5 bedroom townhouse with just me living here for both gas and electric... I dont use the oven and stove much but my computers are on 24 hours a day and lights are on a lot. Plus i always have the heating on as I get cold quickly. Think my main electric sink is the dishwasher, washing machine and tumble dryer so they're only on twice a week
 
2blue4u said:
Faulty meters tend to be massively out - and not just slightly above expected readings.

Why are you going to the ombudsman about a 'suspected' faulty meter? Your supplier will get it checked out for you.
Click to expand...

EDF are happily ignoring us.

The usage is massively out. £300 electricity pa, £3000 gas (roughly). When heating is on it's like £10-15 per day, and the boiler is modern.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top