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David Wilson
Wilson’s world
David Wilson is editor of Engineeringtalk and Electronicstalk, and contributing editor to The Engineer
Energy crisis
I got a bit of a shock the other week when the quarterly bill for my gas and electricity came in at more than £400.
Now I realise that we have experienced some extremely cold snaps in the UK over the past few months, but I had hoped that my efforts to insulate my house with double glazing, cavity wall and loft insulation might have helped to lower the bills somewhat. Sadly, I was mistaken.
So when the representative of a competitive energy supplier phoned to tell me that he could not only provide me with cheaper fuel prices but also knock £100 off my next year’s energy bills, I jumped at the chance to sign up.
Needless to say, the news soon got back to my previous provider, which instructed its own sales representative to call to entice me back to their company with a better offer. Rather than simply hang up the phone, I decided to see how the outfit might improve upon the deal that I had already signed up to with their competition.
Surprisingly, the sales person informed me that his company could save me the considerable sum of more than £200 in my energy bills each year. But to do so I would have to sign up to an internet-based direct-debit scheme whereby the company in question would take an amount of money directly out of my bank account each quarter based on an estimation of the amount of energy that I used.
Now I’m not a big fan of direct-debit schemes. They’ve always seemed like the financial equivalent of handing over my life savings to my children to invest on my behalf in penny stocks. But when I informed the sales person, he appeared distressed that I would not want to save so much money by enrolling in the scheme.
At this point in the conversation, however, I was becoming more than a little short tempered. I questioned why and how the energy provider could deliver such savings to one set of customers who were willing to sign up to the scheme while denying the same benefits to those folks who are paying by conventional means.
Somewhat altruistically, I thought of those old-aged pensioners here in the UK, many of whom do not have or want to use the Internet to pay their bills in such a fashion. I wondered why they should be deprived of such savings simply because they do not want to adhere to the energy company’s rather biased means of pricing its energy.
It’s clear to me that all the legislation that has been introduced over the past few years to regulate these energy providers has done nothing to ensure that they behave in a fair way to all of their potential customers, regardless of the way that they wish to pay their bills.
But let’s look on the bright side. After all, the competitive energy market has provided work for hundreds - if not thousands - of sales representatives in call centres up and down the country who work late into the night to inform their customers of the latest deals that are available to them. And work of any kind can’t be a bad thing these days, can it?
Dave Wilson
The Wilson’s world blog also forms part of the Engineeringtalk, Electronicstalk and Manufacturingtalk newsletters. To subscribe, go here for Engineeringtalk, here for Electronicstalk and here for Manufacturingtalk.
Readers' comments (9)
Harold M. George | 27 Jan 2011 2:45 pm
Like Dave I don't like direct debits and find it hard to understand how the financial regulators allow people on direct debits to get fuel and other services at a lower price than those who pay by debit card or credit card.
Money is money no matter how it is spent.
Surely direct debits cost someone in the chain a lot of money. Probably more than the direct/credit card approach.
So is this a case for the FINANCIAL OMSBUDMAN to look into?
Over to you, Dave.
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Ian Thain | 27 Jan 2011 3:38 pm
I have steadfastly refused all Direct Debit schemes from energy suppliers because I don't trust them not to screw up and then leave it to me to get my money back. I pay my bills quarterly, but I pay them online and on time.
The biggest help towards the latter has been a Lotus 123 set of household budgeting spreadsheets I have developed now over about twenty years. There is a sheet for gas & electricity charges, and every item in the calculations for both is shown so that I can (a) see at a glance if anything jumps, and by reading the meters every month (b) predict to within a pound exactly how much each bill will be at least a month before it arrives. That way it's budgeted for, and I don't have any nasty surprises.
Mr Editor, I commend this budget to the House!
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Phil | 27 Jan 2011 3:41 pm
Unlike Dave & others, I am a great believer in Direct Debits, it just makes life so much easier. Not only not having to remember to pay the bill , but doing it monthly (the same period as my megre salary gets paid into my bank (also electronically)) it evens out whan can sometimes be quite massive ups & downs of the bank balance, casued by quarterly bills.
No having to worry that next month, or the month after, I might get a bigger than expected bill, I know exacty how much I will have to pay out each month.
As for getting it cheaper if paying by direct debit, well if it makes it that much easier for me doing it that way, I'm sure it does similar for the supply company & if it's easier for them it must surely be cheaper & if I make it cheaper & easier for them, why shouldn't I get the benifit of it.
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richardtr3a | 27 Jan 2011 7:45 pm
When your usage drops and the direct debits continue you may find yourself ahead and lending the utility your money. If you then stop the DD by moving house or letting there is a very great difficulty in getting any sense or refund from the supplier. I know from experience.
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Bren | 28 Jan 2011 9:39 am
I recently changed supplier when I realised that I was overpaying on my monthly direct debit. It was obvious that I did not need to pay so much each month, yet the provider was happy to take the money off me without offering to reduce payments. My latest supplier is now saving me over £100 a month in direct debit payments.
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A Raith | 28 Jan 2011 8:00 pm
I have done direct debits and don't bother any more.
Yes DD means that you have a known amount going out.
It also means that if your DD payment is high, they have a lot of extra money, further, whilst they're quite quick to claim payments from your bank, they can be slow to return it if you overpay.
I had £150 "credit" with my gas account alone at one point, and it took about 6 weeks to get the money back.
I pay quarterly, by debit card, and over the phone now.
Many firms issue a surcharge to pay by credit card now; anybody know why?
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Andy Mathison | 28 Jan 2011 8:10 pm
Hi,
if you had really done a good job on the insulation, then may I recommend a pellets Burner for the lounge or kitchen. Pellets are still cheap in the summer, the burners can be programmed to start and stop when you want and they push out a fantastic amount of heat at a price most will find attractive.....
As I am 64, I planned to have something that would allow me as a weak 80year old to still load pellets. I am getting too old to cut and store wood....
Ours in the kitchen warms every room and turns the thermostats of the heating off most of the time....
Borrow a thermal imaging camera and check your house with it, you may still have some heat leaks that need attention.
A cheap old digital camera can be dissassembled, the IR filter removed and a simple filter (for daylight) made out of an old floppy disk, to cover the lense fully. With a bit of luck it will show you where the heat is being lost!!! Look to youtube for extra help or instructables, online.
regards
Andy
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Geoff Bentham | 30 Jan 2011 11:18 pm
"The competitive energy market has provided work for hundreds - if not thousands." For those old enough will tell you that Gas and Electric were very cheap and owned by the the District Councils the profits were enough to pay the rates (Property Tax). What could we do with all that labour that we are paying for? You choose.
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Robin1 | 1 Feb 2011 11:21 am
It has to be said there is an unfair side to this domestic energy thing. We are victims of a massive marketing ploy when it comes to getting energy from the multitude of energy suppliers. Surely all we want is just electricity or gas. I don't want to go through a list of a dozen or so options as to what deal I can get by doing this, that or the next thing - options which are clearly marketing ploys to try and suck the life blood out of you as best they can.
Why should there be a difference? Electricity is electricity, gas is gas, plain and simple. And why should someone who cannot access the internet, or who does not have a banking account, have to pay more than some fortunate individual (like me) who has access to both. It seems to me some poor individuals, whether they be in a low income group or not exactly computer savvy, are subsidising those from higher income groups and who are more than likely computer savvy. And don't give me the "that's the reality of life angle". It's not. The reality of life here in so called "First world Britain" is that electricity and gas have gone beyond being a luxury - they're a necessity for us to maintain our first world standard of living. This whole energy supply thing is simply another example of greed and ripoff Britain at work again.
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