£60-£70 a week in electric!

[highhopes19]

Hi everyone

I'm really at my wits end and not sure what else to do .

I made a thread a few weeks ago stating that we were using ridiculous amounts of electric and it turned out we were on the wrong electricity tariff so we had to be changed over which took a couple weeks for them to do that.. It was meant to make our energy usage cheaper but it hasn't made any difference at all were using on average between £60-£70 a week in electricity.

We live in a 2 bed newly built apartment it's all electricity no gas! We are all out majority of the week either at my mums and dads or working!

Neighbours below us are putting on £20 a week! Were Using near enough their monthly allowance in a week .

Today I recieved a letter from southern electric with a gesture of goodwill of £2.73! Yes £2.73 they owe us loads from putting us on the wrong tariff when we first moved in up till now they keep pushing us from pillar to post .

I've contacted the energy obesmen (sp) who are now involved but can't do anything. Yet as they have to give SE a few weeks to respond to me

The final straw was this evening we had been out all day seeing Santa with Isabelle and last min Xmas shopping got in went to switch landing light on inside the hall and it wouldn't come on first thought was light bulbs blown wasn't till I shone my phone to belles room tried her light that I realised electric had cut put

Tom topped up £20 Thursday evening after work, all day Friday we were out working didnt get in till 11:30pm today we were out all day Aswell! And it's gone!

I phoned there emergancy number in tears and they can't do anything till Monday but the man I spoke to said it was a ridculous amount to use a week he said average for a 2 bed all electric flat a month was £90!!!! That's just over a week for us! A month I worked out 11th November to the 15th December we topped up £250!

We can't afford to live like this we all have to share a bed no heating with a hot water bottle at the moment as its costing way to much. I can't cope much more we shouldn't have to live like this

 

[shelx]

That's shocking surely there's something not right there can they not send someone out to check everything working ok? Il be surprised if it is. Nope you get it sorted xx

 

[Abz1982]

that is shocking! I thought my £150 a month was bad - thats with a draughty house with 30 yr old wiring.

Was there not someone on here whos meter was wired wrong? Some issue with the council and the electric company. Might be worth taking some pics of the meter and emailing that to them - and maybe ask downstairs if you can compare to make sure they look the same?

 

[emyandpotato]

There's just no way that can be right! You should go to CAB because I'm sure they'll know more but you need this sorted. Check your meter and get photos of how much it's using and keep all of your bills etc etc. We used to live in an all electric two bed and it was £35 a month.

 

[emyandpotato]

Also, write to your local MP. They're surprisingly helpful and efficient and have ways of getting things sorted ASAP. I wrote to Hazel Blears when the council were threatening bailiffs over council tax that I didn't owe and she sorted it within a week, no idea how! But definitely recommend doing that.

 

[R_x]

Could there be something wrong with the meter? Can you switch company's? X

 

[highhopes19]

Thankyou for the advice

It makes me laugh on the phone they go to me when did you move in and I say in may.... For them to go to me.... Well you haven't experienced a winter there yet .

No I haven't had a winter here yet but I've had nearly 23 winters living with my mum and dad and as i got older I used to pay gas and electric there as my way of house keeping! A large 3 bed house they put £10 on each gas and electric a week... £15 on gas a week in the winter obviously for heating

It's getting me down it really is, I suffer from depression and this is tipping me over the edge I feel so down like I've failed Isabelle as I can't even give her a nice warm home .

Its so frustrating that we've just had to top up another £20 this evening because it cut off.. The man I spoke to said to top up £20 till Monday which fingers crossed will last

 

[highhopes19]

Could there be something wrong with the meter? Can you switch company's? X

I'm seriously considering switching companies I want the money back they owe me first though, they said they checked the meter and they reckon they couldn't find anything wrong.. Apparently they checked it when they came out on the 6th to change the tariff and key.

If I changed companies would I have the same problem? Or todo they change whole meter? Sorry for silly question its our first home xx

 

[highhopes19]

Also, write to your local MP. They're surprisingly helpful and efficient and have ways of getting things sorted ASAP. I wrote to Hazel Blears when the council were threatening bailiffs over council tax that I didn't owe and she sorted it within a week, no idea how! But definitely recommend doing that.

Thankyou just looking up my local MPs address now

 

[highhopes19]

I've just emailed my MP as there wasn't an address to write to x

 

[Kate&Lucas]

I am having the EXACT same problem with my gas at the moment! I had it earlier in the year, the meter was replaced after months of them telling me it's not a fault, then it started happening again this week, I've been in tears with it. It's eating £10 a day when £10 usually lasts me an entire week, then saying the emergency has been used when it hasn't (then takes a fiver off my next topup for the emergency). It's a tiny house with just is two and we're out all day during the week!
I got another engineer out today who said the meter needed to be "reset" and put a credit on but I'm really not convinced it's been fixed yet. He just seemed to give me advice on how to use less gas but we barely use any as it is :-/

Sorry I don't know how to get through to them as I'm being fobbed off left right and centre atm too. Hope it gets sorted for you

 

[amytrisha]

Does your apartment have storage heaters? If so don't use them and buy plug in heaters instead, storage heaters literally eat electric!

I'd defo ring another company and explain what's going on see if they can help you out and answer any questions you have.

You really shouldn't be having to pay so much x

 

[CumbrianMummy]

That's not right at all hun. I'm with southern electric and pay monthly. When i moved in 6 months ago i got set up on the standard tarriff i think and pay £80 a month for gas and electric so it works out £10 a week on both. Can you set up an account online? I set mine up 2 months ago and found out i was actually in credit and they owed me money. It should show up if they owe you money. I'm not sure if you can set up an account on pre paid meters tho. Hope they sort it soon hun.

We live in a 2 bedroomed council house. x

 

[lilyd]

Ask them what your charge per kwh (kilowatt hour) is and then see if this is inflated via a price comparison website. You should then be able to determine if they have you on an excessively expensive tariff still or if there is a problem with your meter.

 

[Loozle]

Do you have an immersion heater to heat your water? If you do and that's been left on, that could be why you're using so much electric?

 

[Rainbow82]

Do you have an immersion heater fir storage heaters that tops them up during the day? If so and you're on an economy seven tariff that could count for a lot of the electric your using. Or maybe your meter is ticking round too quickly in which case changing companies won't help as they don't physically put in a new meter. Maybe it's also wired wring and you're paying for someone else's electric? Easy way to check last two is to turn everything off in your flat including fridge, freezer, washer, turn microwave and oven off at the wall and all the sockets off at wall etc, turn boiler off at wall and leave the house for a few hours (6-8 should be enough) make sure you check the meter reading and how much money is on there before you go and if it's gone down when you get back then you might have someone else wired to your meter. If it hasn't gone down then leave everything off but the freezer or fridge and check again in a few hours, as a guide our fridge and freezer uses 1-2p an hour together. If it's significant mire than this that yours has used then again it's the meter. If not check again after putting your boiler on again. If that's the problem it's probably set on some setting that constantly heats water instead of just at night or when you run water. If it's your boiler ask your neighbour if you can look st their settings and replicate them. Hope this helps, we had a similar issue a few years ago but the boiler was so old the only way we could avoid paying was to turn off completely during the day when electric cost us more.

 

[mammy2oaklen]

Aw thats awful keep on till they sort it but id def switch to stop u spending that amount. Im a sahm with electircal items on all day sreriliser on twice a day tumble dryer for 2 hours a day and I only use 50 a month in a 3 bed house

 

[mummyof3babas]

u could be paying off someone elses bill?

 

[highhopes19]

We don't have storage heaters they asked us when I first phoned up if we have storage heaters or wet radiators... And we have wet radiators. Also our Emerson isn't on all the time we set it up back in may to come on twice a day for an hour each time to heat water and warm the flat up for the morning and then again in the evening for an hour.

On our tariff between certain times our electric is cheaper and 10.5p a kW... Then other times is 12.4p a kW... So I really try to use the times its cheaper to get things like washing done, but its made no difference.

I turned off everything..literally everything last night when we went to bed except our fridge/freezer. And it had taken off £2. Turned everything on went and looked 3 hours after turning it on and it had taken another £4 off! All that we had on was the usual household things tv, fridge/freezer, bathroom light and used the kettle once.

There all new appliances as we've only had them 6-7 months from new

Roll on tomorrow when I phone them I'm not coming off the phone till something is sorted as we can't afford to do this much more

 

[lilyd]

A fridge freezer should cost £70 ish to run per year (obviously variable according to tariff), so if yours is taking £2 overnight then something is very wrong.

They are either not charging you at the correct rate or you have a faulty meter. It is very unlikely (although not impossible) that a neighbour is tapping your electricity supply. This is usually done when people are growing cannabis!