Gas - Can somebody help me??

[ash t]

Hi.

for the winter I had a gas bill of £600odd. We have recently moved in and this was our first winter.

Now I have heard that some companies charge for cubic metres of gas, however our meter says Cubic Feet.

Does anybody know how N Power charge for Gas. I have been on the website and they charge for KwH, which means nothing to me.

Their call centre is closed so I cant ask them directly. Can somebody help??

Thanks

Ash
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/watchdog/2009/01/are_you_paying_too_much_for_ga.html

[ash t]

Thanks Joe,

I cant find a bill anywhere. I had a clearout only yesterday and I think I threw it away.

If I am being charged for Cubic Meters, however my meter reads cubic feet, this means that for each cubic foot I use, N power think im using a cubic meter?

Im getting my hopes up here, but knowing my luck im wrong...
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[Tonka]

I think it's people with metric that have the problem, as their bills are being mulitplied by 3 where only the meters measured in feet should have the usage mulitplied by 3.

TBH £600 for the winter 6 months would not be too far off the mark for a family house with central heating and hot water running on gas.

Get a copy of your bill and check the start and end readings and that the end reading isn't an estimate, would be my advice.

HTH
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[Kickstart]

[JonB]

If it is for 6 months, then that is pretty good. Our last quarter bill was £550.
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[Ariel Badger]

I heat and cook on gas and my last 1/4 was £200.
Then again I live alone and and am at work a lot. Plus I am a mean old sod who wears wooly jumpers and hats in the house.
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[Kickstart]

Hi

From some old info, the cubic foot number of units is convertered to cubic meters by multiplying by 2.83. This is then multiplied by a correction factor of 1.02264 and then by a calorific value (which was 40.9, should be on your gas bill), then divide by 3.6 to get kWh.

All the best

Keith
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[pa_broon74]

I always pay quarterly by debit card online. You put in your meter reading each quarter and only pay for what you use.

None of this DD or estimated meter reading stuff, they will just rip you off, hold on to your money so they can make money from it themselves.

Ok, you might save £3 going by DD but if they're charging the same during the summer as they do during the winter, I fail to see how that is fair.

Register to pay online, then rsubmit an actual meter reading and get a new bill.


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[pa_broon74]

Never realised it was as much as that.

I just resent big utility companies holding onto people's money to invest (or do what ever it is they do with it.)

If they're giving a £100 saving they'll be making that somewhere else, perhaps in tying folk into contracts or holding the 'surplus' paid in a high interest account... (If such a thing exists... )


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[Kickstart]

Hi

Not really, they also have to cover all the losses for people whose bills are underestimated so not really a massive surplus.

The £100 is worth it to them if it means they are getting paid regularly, rather than having to send out red letters, chase people up, process individual payments, etc. Probably also makes it far less likely that people will land up in a load of debt and default, costing them money chasing them through the courts.

All the best

Keith
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Kwaks]

In addition those paying by DD are less likely to jump about chasing cheaper prices, thus are more loyal.
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[Tonka]

[iooi]

[Kickstart]

Hi

With the bod you speak to it probably depends on whether they have got beyond the reading a script stage. Speaking to random people and having to type their details into some dodgy old system which nobody likes is not exactly the pinacle of most people career aspirations.

All the best

Keith
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[pa_broon74]

Probably.

But why should I pay to cover the utility companies short sightedness...

DD might be easier, but big utility companies have a track record of poor ethics in terms of their customer's money. I wouldn't trust them as far as I could, ummm, throw them?


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[pa_broon74]

Currently I pay quarterly by debit card, I put in meter readings, a bill is generated and I pay it. I'm only paying for what I use.

If I pay by direct debit, its inflexible. Trying to get a power company to alter the direct debit is hard work. If you over pay (given the power company's track record, I suspect more people over pay than do under pay.) Also, as I understand it, in the small print, you're not able to get any over-payment back until you sever ties with that supplier for what ever reason.

So, I'm not paying to cover other peoples under payments or non-payments (well, I am, but potentially not to the extent I would be if I was using DD.)

Ok, the power company might try to recoup those losses by hiking up the prices, but competition comes into play. Doesn't matter what you do, they're all going to alter prices to cover losses but they're still in competition with each other, its all relative.

In terms of gas usage, I stayed in my last flat for 18 months and our gas bill didn't amount to more than £600 for that entire time period. The direct debit payment suggested to us by scottish power (as I recall) was about £55 per month.


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[pa_broon74]

Not having looked at any deals for direct debit payment (and not being arsed to do a point by point rebuttal of your post above.)

I'm sure there's something in what your saying, but I just don't trust the power companies as much as you do. Direct debit amounts are hard to change, its an off'd mentioned complaint about power company business practice.

https://www.utilityweek.co.uk/news/uk/panutility/which-accuses-energy-firms-ove.php (Basically Which? carried out a survey and opver payment accounted for the highest number of complaints.)

https://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/mar/27/ofgem-energy-bills-direct-debit-payments (Report from the Guardian about OFGEM telling suppliers to wind their necks in regarding DD increases.)

I pay the same per kilowatt hour as someone paying by direct debit, again, not checking the deals (life is to short) I'd rather put any potential over payment in a savings account (for what its worth) or spend it on stuff I want/need rather than lodge it with a power company so they can do what ever it is they do with it.

I just don't believe the savings are as far reaching as you claim. But please don't spend time checking it out, I take your point, but I just don't trust any business enterprise these days; its all motivated by profit.


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[Amanda]

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[Amanda]