Energy Prices (Strictly NO referrals!)

[Robbo]

It'll go to the bill payers account per property afaik, so unless that's the landlord then no

Depends, sometimes it's cheaper and quicker just to pay out a blanket amount to everyone than the cost and time to work out a means test, though this £400 hasn't exactly been speedy!

The other £800 of help coming is means tested for people on benefits though, which is fair enough

Yes, I know they said it's quicker to just hand it out and that makes sense.

However, if we're in a situation where the government are going to be giving out a lot more money, it'll be worth some more detailed means testing! Will they though? No sign of that yet.

 

[Curlyriff]

Yeah if 600 miles a week, what can you do.
Is child care based purely on salary?

Its quite horrifying really how you can earn well over average but be no better off than someone with a bit more than nothing.

Can you change jobs?

I looked at getting a new job recently that was only 48 mile daily commute (no where closer for my job where I am based unfortunately) and instead I got a £5k pay rise last month (the cost to travel fuel was less for work but needed public transport to get into city centre as no parking at the office, so only about £4 a day actually better).

Problem is prior that I was using my overdraft/savings since the beginning of this year to cover the shortfall every month (about £270 a month better take home now) but now no savings left and so have nothing there plus the increased costs.

What is worse I am not even well over average in the UK salary. I am around 46% above the lowest earner. To be well above average 60%+ you need to be earning £62k+

 

[413x]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

 

[.:MBK:.]

Doubt I'll not use it, but it might be at 17 instead of 19...thicker clothing is the name of the game I suspect.

 

[Freakbro]

I'm just waiting to time getting the oil tank refilled. Crude has been dropping lately and so has heating oil so I've been waiting, just trying to time it before demand increases prior to the cold weather.

My partner has the NEST set at 25* I'll be setting it lower this year

 

[Curlyriff]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

Didn't have the heating on last winter (bar 3 days between November and March), certainly wont this winter. Cut it down to basically nothing as Octopus had that bonus thing going last winter.

 

[Hawk Tuah]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

Na, can't do anything like that. But I'll turn it down a few degrees.

 

[Uther]

Doubt I'll not use it, but it might be at 17 instead of 19...thicker clothing is the name of the game I suspect.

Now my wife's going through the menopause I'm hoping to have the thermostat set to that, previously it would never be lower than 24 all winter...

 

[scarps]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

Way it's going we are only having it on in the living room and bathroom, we never have it on in the bedrooms anyway, even previous years.
So don't no how much that will save just having two radiators on compared to six.

Heating will be on from 7pm to 11pm that's all I guess.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

A 2nd hand Leaf or Zoe can be had for ~£8k on finance from a dealer. You are absolutely correct they won't do 100 miles, but if he can charge at work then it would be feasible. Hence why I said "if you can make it work". It might not, but certainly worth looking into.

That is a pretty big ‘if’ and even if your workplace has chargers, you’d need it to be guaranteed or you can’t get home.

Not to mention the the Leaf or Zoe will also be ancient at that price point.

For a 100 mile daily commute you NEED a 40kwh Leaf or Zoe. The 30kwh would be a bit too close for comfort IMO, you’d be getting in on fumes in the winter and you couldn’t really go back out again.

You could do it in an Ionic but they start at £20k, yup £20k for a 17/18 plate Ionic…

I’m not sure how much a 40kwh leaf or Zoe is (£15+k?) but either way, not ‘cheap’ by anyones definition.

I say the above as someone who drives an EV.

I can't get finance approved to get any EV. I tried that prior but with the high mileage I do the quotes are about £600 a month for the cheapest car!

At that milage you’d want to avoid PCP and leasing and go down the personal loan route. The latter should cheaper overall either way.

 

[XeNoNF50]

So.. Do we think its going to be an actual genuine break down of society this winter?

If the tories don't provide substantially more how can it not be?

Let's face it, if they don't give money directly they are going to be taking on failed suppliers anyway.



Not going to lie, it's concerning. Even if you aren't impacted directly this amount of potential civil unrest will affect everyone.

I fully expect to see scenes on the news I've never seen in the UK in my lifetime

I expect it will fully get underway in November. Pre Christmas, grim weather, first real bills land

Would expect a pretty comprehensive support package, betraying tory members, pretty soon after whoever wins takes office. Not a vote winner, giving money away to the plebs is it? Probably why Rishi is losing tbh.

I can't imagine how bad it will be if it is not. And they will become unelectable for the masses if they sit idly by and do nothing.

I am not going to be affected in the grand scheme of things but I am worried for people in general.

 

[Dutch777]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

We had the heating on about 6 hrs a day last winter, trying to prepare for not having it on this winter hopefully it will be mild again worst case will have it on for a couple of hrs in the evening this year....

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Make sure you turn your TRVs down and the thermostat.

If you don’t your rooms will still be 20c+.

 

[pastymuncher]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

Unfortunately that isn't a option up here. Even a mild winter requires the heating to be on for a few hours a day and in the case of a bad winter, well let's hope we don't have one of those although it is overdue. That's not to say that I won't be turning the heating down and resisting turning it on until as late in the year as possible. I have already dropped the hot water temp down to 50 degrees C. These houses were built in the early 70's and still have the original double glazing which means that all the seals have hardened and are draughty as hell which means that the house is stone cold within 45 minutes of the heating going off. The housing association isn't interested in doing anything about it as they replaced the insulation in the walls with poly beads a few years ago and increased the insulation in the loft and seem to think that's enough to give a warm house. The poly beads in the walls did make a big difference but it also has a downside in that we cannot cool the house in the summer. In these hot spells we have had the inside of the house was over 26 degrees C and was sweltering.

To make things worse my cheap fix is coming to a end in October and I will get hit by all of the price rises in one go.

 

[Haggisman]

That is a pretty big ‘if’ and even if your workplace has chargers, you’d need it to be guaranteed or you can’t get home.

Not to mention the the Leaf or Zoe will also be ancient at that price point.

For a 100 mile daily commute you NEED a 40kwh Leaf or Zoe. The 30kwh would be a bit too close for comfort IMO, you’d be getting in on fumes in the winter and you couldn’t really go back out again.

You could do it in an Ionic but they start at £20k, yup £20k for a 17/18 plate Ionic…

I’m not sure how much a 40kwh leaf or Zoe is (£15+k?) but either way, not ‘cheap’ by anyones definition.

I say the above as someone who drives an EV.


At that milage you’d want to avoid PCP and leasing and go down the personal loan route. The latter should cheaper overall either way.

Wow... I was looking Ioniqs a couple of years ago and the same ones were £15k. I sold my Zoe 2 years ago for £15k, looks like it would be worth about £18k now

Didn't realise even the "cheaper" ones had increased in price so much, fair enough :s

@Curlyriff - guessing there's no possibility to WFH? Even just 1 day a week would save you £80/month in fuel. Hoping your kids are old enough they will be getting the 30hrs free childcare soon - our youngest will be eligible in April and that's going to free up a nice chunk of money.

 

[Chillr]

Way it's going we are only having it on in the living room and bathroom, we never have it on in the bedrooms anyway, even previous years.
So don't no how much that will save just having two radiators on compared to six.

Heating will be on from 7pm to 11pm that's all I guess.

Yeah love to know this too, thinking of just have radiators in livingroom and bedroom and use small halogen leccy heater if needed now and again, wonder if its much of a saving, sorry state of affairs its come to this but present government don't seem to do much about it. Hope is a mild winter.

 

[LabR@t]

Going to turn the fuse box of and tell the kids there's a power cut, they won't know any better

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

How many of you guys think you might genuinely turn off the heating this winter?

Obviously it saves a hell of a lot of cash. But comes with misery and bad health.

When does it become better to spend 6 months in somewhere cheap and hot?

I'm hopeing It's going to be off until the worst of the weather hits all being well.

My supplier went bust back in September last year so it gave me a bit of a heads up to what was happening early on (although never thought it would get this bad) decided it was time to replace the gas fire with a log burner and started sourcing fire wood last autumn. I've now got at least a seasons worth of wood with several more trees to process and store ( probably another couple of seasons worth) will be installing the log burner in the next month or so ready for action.

Fitted one in my previous house, best job I ever did, toasty.

 

[Blackjack Davy]

It's the windows. They're old, they don't fit properly and the wind just comes through.

We tried to get cavity wall insulation done a few years back when there were grants, it was all booked, the company came out and told us it couldn't be done. I don't remember the reason why.


I can't afford the £15k to have it done.

Probably about the time the govt stopped all the subsidies on insulation despite the UK having one of the if not the worst rates for lack of home insulation in the whole of europe

 

[Curlyriff]

Wow... I was looking Ioniqs a couple of years ago and the same ones were £15k. I sold my Zoe 2 years ago for £15k, looks like it would be worth about £18k now

Didn't realise even the "cheaper" ones had increased in price so much, fair enough :s

@Curlyriff - guessing there's no possibility to WFH? Even just 1 day a week would save you £80/month in fuel. Hoping your kids are old enough they will be getting the 30hrs free childcare soon - our youngest will be eligible in April and that's going to free up a nice chunk of money.

Ah apologise that my bad on the Child care, meant as in CSA Child Maintenance. Me and Ex split up end last year and now I have to pay the £1k to her for next 16yrs (or more if wage increases) hence why it is % of salary.

The work from home is possible sometimes but I train staff etc and that so much easier in person so at moment I am getting 2 days a month at home only but yeah that saves £40 on what fuel would be otherwise. It the other reason my mileage higher still as I need to travel to see my children once in week and every weekend and then because I don't see them much take them out and travel more (which ex and CSA don't care about so that I have to find out my pocket, either by cutting my food expenses or asking work if I can do another day or two at home to reduce the fuel as a one off).

It a mess and really hard to balance so this all now is the tipping point in that I haven't gamed in 2 months now cause of this and the cost associated with doing so. I don't qualify for support because they don't take fuel expense or car expense as essential or into account. Yet on top of what I give my ex, her house paid for, she on working benefit, just signed up with PIP and getting all the extra grants meaning she has about £1k a month disposable without working at all!

I am genuinely at point wondering if I should sell up if my parents would let me move back in at 33 because it closer to work and can save for a few more years to try and get back on the property ladder and I haven't lived at home since I moved out at 15 and got my first mortgage/property at 19.