Gas and Electricity Bill Help!

[gazwigan]

Hi, my electicity bill has rocketed to �49 a month and my gas �55 a month and considering i only have a 2 bedroomed house, i am quite alarmed!

Does anyone know which appliances in the house use up the most electricity and gas?

[redcrx]

gas consumption may have increased if youre now putting your heating on as well as heating water but i still think its excessive.

What was it before? if you were paying monthly were you still in debt when the bills came out, as they will adjust the payments to then cover any shortfalls previously.

[tickledtrout]

Hi, I have exactly the same problem, electricity only went from �41 a month to �90 for a two bedroom house. The only think I changed was not to use standby and just boil water I need. Out at work all day so can't understand why its so much.My bill has now come down by �10 a month. Wow!

[chazza]

Do you have a tumble dryer? They are very hard on electricity, as is the oven (try not to have it on for long periods at a time).

Things like TVs don't use a lot but make sure everything like that is turned off completely and not left on standby, you'd be surprised at how much electric is used for standby mode!

[natalie_1982]

Blimey! I have a 3bed and pay �30 eletric and �20 gas - that's with GCH and gas cooker.

[natalie_1982]

Oh, and as posted already above. I never leave anything on standby and even switch off at the wall if not in use (I know phone chargers still use power if plugged in but not switched off, don't know about other appliances).

[Reverandfunk]

100 quid burger me!

Ours is 40 ish

[whiffey]

That is alarming. Are you paying by direct debit, and have they put up the payments based on estimates ? If so get the meters read. Mine was looking to go up from �22 per month for gas to �60 so I got them in double quick and they decided not to after all.

[Hellyon]

gazwigan - whiffey is right if they have not read your meters for a while they could estimate future use on your readings. They are also sneaky - they over charge you so that your money is sitting gaining interest in their bank account. Last year I was in credit by �200 at Christmas. They reduced my monthly payment by �30 and I am once again �200 in credit and it would have been over �500 if I hadn't got them to re look at my monthly payment.

The other thing that happens is that Transco read the meters on behalf of the fuel companies and they base the address on your post code which they some times get wrong. I once had a gas bill for �800 and I only had a gas fire! They had read the meter at a neighbours house and used that reading as mine.

[redcrx]

hellyon, you know you can get them to send you the money back dont you?

[lorla]

Sorry to repeat but simialr for me too - just got a �299 refund because they were billing me on estimates rather than the readings I repeatedly gave them so make sure they're not doing this.

Before I realised the error, they were threatening to up my �30 per month DD to �78! I was in utter panic...cheeky *******.

[Hellyon]

Hi Red - yes I get them to give me the money back - I kind of treat it like a Christmas Club now no interest but it is quite handy!!!

[phil04029]

which provider are you with...i have dual fuel from br.... gas. i ahve a 2 bed house with an elctricity gobbling partner and a 3 yr old and i pay 40 a month for both and i can have my dryer on twice a day and also the washer.the only thing that i have done is swithched pipes or my father did in the washer so my washer washes my clothes in cold water as apose to heating up..and very good results i get too.