Bills
- Thread starter h4rm0ny
- Start date
My house idles at around 800kW with an outside fish pond pump, a couple of PCs on etc so your figures aren't too unreasonable if you run a silly amount of lights and devices, heaters etc.
Pro tip: sign up to both https://www.uswitch.com/gas-electricity/ and http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub to be notified when you're paying too much for your gas/electric so you can switch. A quick calculation shows you could be paying about 35% less compared to your current tariff!
Pro tip: sign up to both https://www.uswitch.com/gas-electricity/ and http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub to be notified when you're paying too much for your gas/electric so you can switch. A quick calculation shows you could be paying about 35% less compared to your current tariff!
Soldato
- Joined
- 23 May 2005
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- Auckland, New Zealand
It baffles me when people are shocked by their utility bills. You literally have a reading on the wall telling you how much you're using. Leaving it for a year without thinking about it is just irresponsible.
OP: if this latest bill isn't an estimated reading, then the amount you owe is accurate as per your usage and what the utility company is charging.
Edit: to be helpful, my electricity bill is roughly £30pcm so £360/year. That's me and my girlfriend in a large flat - two working adults with gadgets, laptops and tv on all evening. Our heating, hob and hot water is gas, for which we pay £35pcm on average (more in winter, less in summer)
OP: if this latest bill isn't an estimated reading, then the amount you owe is accurate as per your usage and what the utility company is charging.
Edit: to be helpful, my electricity bill is roughly £30pcm so £360/year. That's me and my girlfriend in a large flat - two working adults with gadgets, laptops and tv on all evening. Our heating, hob and hot water is gas, for which we pay £35pcm on average (more in winter, less in summer)
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When was the last time your metre was read? I'd expect that figure to rise sharply if it hasn't been read in a while
I take a reading every month. We're currently £13 in credit
The main thing which uses up electric is the oven and kettle. All lights have been switched to LED. Pi/Home Server are only on when we're at home, everything else is switched off.
I do expect it to rise in winter.
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You pay electric bills for decades and it's never been more than around £600-800 pounds per annum which is below your threshold of something you get concerned about, then you get one for £2,000 having received an estimate of £400 a few months earlier. Being surprised is pretty understandable and not grounds for your disdain, I feel.
Most people, contrary to your post, do not check their electric metre every month, jot it down and do the sums - they being people with personalities and such.
EDIT: Same goes for you, Dynix. I got a bill that was way higher than expected and I posted asking what other people paid / used. Not everything is a reason to look down on other people who have busy lives and get through them by abstracting based on previous experience. Unless, I suppose, you are especially looking for reasons to leap on a thread and exclaim how you can't believe people don't check their metre every month. Which is pretty sad.
EDIT: EDIT:
Thanks - just seen what you added to your post. Appreciate the helpful response.
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It would make no difference, it is the frequency of meter readings not frequency of payments that matter here.
I take a reading every month. We're currently £13 in credit
The main thing which uses up electric is the oven and kettle. All lights have been switched to LED. Pi/Home Server are only on when we're at home, everything else is switched off.
I do expect it to rise in winter.
Every 2 weeks, currently £104 in credit
Permabanned
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just to gloat, I pay £33 a month gas and electricity.
Don't even have solar panels.
Don't even have solar panels.
You're probably right, but it's a fair point that the longer you don't check these things the bigger the pain will be if there's a problem, as it appears you've discovered.
E.g. if you were at least doing quarterly readings (as I do) you could have probably saved several hundred quid. Spending 5-10 mins every three months isn't much of a burden IMO. My supplier (ecotricity) sends me an email every 3 months, I put the readings into the website, job done.
Fingers crossed they let you off some of it for being a long time ago.
When was the last time your metre was read? I'd expect that figure to rise sharply if it hasn't been read in a while
A family of 4 (twin babies too) and we use £40 a month on pre pay meter so I can track what I'm using. £50 a month isnt' a lot.
I have zero sympathy for people who have this happen, take a reading every month at least and check it yourself and work out your own bills
. Find difference between your readings, say you used 400 for electric, 100 for gas in 1 month. Unit rate is 12p for electric and 3p for gas
. Electric - 400KWH x 0.1200p = £48
. Gas imperial - 100*2.83*1.02264*40/3.6 = 3215KWH x 0.030p = £96
. Gas Metric - 100*1.02264*40/2.84 = 1136KWH x 0.030p = £34
As a rough calculation (the 40 could be 39.2 depending where you are in the country)
Do it every month and track your usage...you will never be caught out on your bills.
If you refuse to do it, you are just lazy and have no excuse to complain about high bills.
. Find difference between your readings, say you used 400 for electric, 100 for gas in 1 month. Unit rate is 12p for electric and 3p for gas
. Electric - 400KWH x 0.1200p = £48
. Gas imperial - 100*2.83*1.02264*40/3.6 = 3215KWH x 0.030p = £96
. Gas Metric - 100*1.02264*40/2.84 = 1136KWH x 0.030p = £34
As a rough calculation (the 40 could be 39.2 depending where you are in the country)
Do it every month and track your usage...you will never be caught out on your bills.
If you refuse to do it, you are just lazy and have no excuse to complain about high bills.
Deleted member 651465
Deleted member 651465
You shouldn't even need to work it out. A meter reading every month should stop the actual costs snowballing.
Soldato
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- 22 Feb 2014
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- 2,926
~£90 electric pcm
~£35 gas pcm
gas hob/central heating.
46" plasma telly
400L tropical fish tank
GF who does not realise that a light switch is also used for turning lights off as well as on. (although most bulbs changed to LED now)
~£35 gas pcm
gas hob/central heating.
46" plasma telly
400L tropical fish tank
GF who does not realise that a light switch is also used for turning lights off as well as on. (although most bulbs changed to LED now)
Soldato
- Joined
- 1 Mar 2010
- Posts
- 6,316
GD is slow today.
...
After an ugly and confused first half, with a number of players being sent off for appearing just too damn high, the teams are back on the pitch: The challengers are short of a goalkeeper and their centre forward is missing in action for two out of every five minutes he plays.
I don't know about you, Reg, but to me it looks set to be a messy slaughter. Look, look, the banners are going up in the stands... What'd they say? 'Give Us Our £2000' Oh dear. The fans are close to an outright riot! And we kick off again...
It's Wimminz Bills: 0; Immersion Boilermakers: 1.
...
After an ugly and confused first half, with a number of players being sent off for appearing just too damn high, the teams are back on the pitch: The challengers are short of a goalkeeper and their centre forward is missing in action for two out of every five minutes he plays.
I don't know about you, Reg, but to me it looks set to be a messy slaughter. Look, look, the banners are going up in the stands... What'd they say? 'Give Us Our £2000' Oh dear. The fans are close to an outright riot! And we kick off again...
It's Wimminz Bills: 0; Immersion Boilermakers: 1.
Yes of course for sain people, but people who believe energy company's are trying to con them, complaining that they havn't used allot of usage will be able to keep an eye on it themselves and see they are delusional and have no idea how much different appliances use.
The amount of people who call each day and go "MY BILLS ARE TOO HIGH I HAVEN'T USED THIS!!!" is stupid. Then having to sit there and explain how much stuff uses. Took me almost 3hours a week ago to explain to a man his bill which he refused to accept till I went bit by bit on how much his appliances where using and by the end he was like...."oh that makes sense..."
Soldato
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- 15 Oct 2003
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- 16,024
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- Chengdu
The amount of people who call each day and go "MY BILLS ARE TOO HIGH I HAVEN'T USED THIS!!!" is stupid. Then having to sit there and explain how much stuff uses. Took me almost 3hours a week ago to explain to a man his bill which he refused to accept till I went bit by bit on how much his appliances where using and by the end he was like...."oh that makes sense..."
I went through 3 months of misery telling nPower that my bill was too high. And every time I was treated like a moron, who didn't know what he was talking about. Despite providing them with payment history, and meter reading history.
It's a 2 way street. There are plenty of times the energy companies get it wrong. And they do not like to admin they are wrong.
GD is slow today.
...
After an ugly and confused first half, with a number of players being sent off for appearing just too damn high, the teams are back on the pitch: The challengers are short of a goalkeeper and their centre forward is missing in action for two out of every five minutes he plays.
I don't know about you, Reg, but to me it looks set to be a messy slaughter. Look, look, the banners are going up in the stands... What'd they say? 'Give Us Our £2000' Oh dear. The fans are close to an outright riot! And we kick off again...
It's Wimminz Bills: 0; Immersion Boilermakers: 1.
You should join the BT Sport commentary team.
We live in a 3 bedroom flat with no gas and our bill with 2 of us is just over £1000/year. I work from home as well so that moves it up a bit. If you don't have gas and like to keep your house warm then £2000 really isn't that much for a years electricity.