To think £6,000 a year energy bills are completely unsustainable

[Butterflyfluff]

Following on from this thread but quite unbelievably the projected figure has gone from £4,200 to £6,000 now.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4607670-to-think-that-very-few-people-can-manage-ps4200-energy-bills?page=40

Where will this all end?

If the standing charge goes up any further I think a lot of people will self disconnect, we can't cut back our usage any more (we're already having three minute showers for fucks sake) and our on average £2 a day electricity bill will be over £3 a day from October, I'm not too sure on the gas because at the moment we only have it for cooking.

DH has brought an electric blanket as his disability can be aggravated by cold.

I'm going to stop thinking about it as otherwise I'll go nuts.

That's fair @forinborin

I've been listening to Cornwall Insights because that's the one Martin Lewis says has been most accurate at predictions.

But it's a fair point about some wishing for the exposure and in the media.

I shall be very pleased if the doom does not come to pass!

I have to admit I’ve thought similar myself while doing the shopping. My electric oven costs about 60p per hour, by Christmas it’ll be more like £1 per hour, and in 2023 it’ll be around £1.40 per hour. Compared to my gas hob which costs about 14p per hour, soon to rise to 20p per hour, and maybe 25p per hour next year.

That means a Sunday roast will cost an extra couple of quid on top of the food price, so we will mostly stop doing that. We definitely won’t be baking cakes. Sausages for breakfast will cost about a quid to put in the oven, vs bacon which will cost about 3p to cook on the hob. Wonder how many other people are starting to think this way about their food choices?

@Dadaya I'm very aware that my electric fan oven uses a lot of electricity. The smart meter starts screaming at me whenever it's on. I am trying to cook more meals on the gas hob and have bought a replacement slow cooker. Have always found results a bit watery with a sc, but I can always decant the finished sauce and rapidly reduce on gas hob at the end.

I am worried sick about the energy bill increases. We have an 8 month old and 4 year old and the thought of them having to live in a cold house through winter is making me really upset and anxious already. I'm so angry with the government and their absolute ineptitude and 'I'm alright Jack' attitude. They can fuck off every single one of them with their second homes and big salaries and contracts for mates. I for one will be more than ready to take to streets to protest and demand action come autumn.

We’ve always had 3 minute showers, not because of the cost but for the environment. I understand that some people leave the shower running the whole time but it’s completely unnecessary. I turn it on to get wet, again to rinse off shampoo, and then finally to rinse off soap and conditioner.

@Dadaya you can cook sausages on the hob too

Yes I think so

The £400 payment is of course welcome, but I can't help feel like this is such a cop out - for me this may equate to around one months electricity usage ( I am 100% electricity as no gas where I live). £400 just isn't even going to make a dent in most peoples bills sadly.

Until this changes, we are fucked.

We're pretty much fucked anyway.

Multiple harvest failure predicted: www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/war-wild-weather-global-crop-problems-point-years-high-food-prices-2022-06-28/; www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/12/mass-crop-failures-expected-in-england-as-farmers-demand-hosepipe-bans

Inflation predicted to exceed 18% next year: www.ft.com/content/778e65e1-6ec5-4fd7-98d5-9d701eb29567

Unrelenting staff shortages in many sectors: www.britishchambers.org.uk/news/2022/07/rapid-reform-needed-to-tackle-crippling-staff-shortages-quarterly-recruitment-outlook

Plus all the strikes that will shut down many services.

Beyond the rapidly increasing prediction for domestic fuel bills, there are all the non-domestic users whose bills aren't capped. As things stand, there is no conceivable way schools can stay open through the winter, for example.

And will people please stop saying they hope the fuel bill cap will come down? I hope I can afford to retire before I die, but hoping isn't going to make it happen.

It's not just that Truss and her fellow maniacs don't care if people starve or freeze to death. It's that even if they did care they are (a) too ideologically blinded and (b) too moronically incompetent to do anything about it. Johnson has removed everyone competent from The Party and has manoeuvred senior civil servants into positions where they can't propose sensible solutions to problems.

www.cornwall-insight.com/cornwall-insight-release-final-predictions-for-octobers-price-cap/

includes kwh and standing charge forecasts

Is there no plan to invest in renewables or even help households install solar panels to help keep costs down (other than the VAT)? This seems a no brainer as would help cut carbon emissions too

@Dadaya I cooked sausages in the frying pan tonight instead of in the foodi. It doesn't use as much electric as an oven but frying them with the gas hob is cheaper. And that's another thing - people will be eating a lot more unhealthy.
Can you not cook your meat on the hob or in a slow cooker?

I need to be careful here what I say !

We slid from the Covid/ jab crisis , seamlessly into a war against Russia...

All of these factors & the lockdowns , have a price .
It's a VERY heavy price.

The Govt expects you to pay for , what I & many , consider to be it's mistakes
( To be more precise, it's ' deliberate inflicting of needless suffering , death & poverty ' on those whom the wealthy consider ' dispensible '.
It is that bleak yes.

Many tried to object during the lockdowns : were scorned & threatened.
Vaccines & PPE etc are EXTREMELY expensive !
Drs did well. Each jab , wherever or whoever gave it.nettef them a call bonus
Plus £10 per under 16.

You either ' stand with Ukraine ' & believe what you hear on our controlled Govt run media...or you object & fight for principles.

Or, you have no right to moan when ppl die if fuel poverty or blackouts.

Today one Dnergy CEO said clearly....the people cannot be expected to fund a war with Russia.

It's up to every single one of you now.
Nobody is gonna do it for you.
Nor is your so called " Govt" going to save you.

If you believe this will just get better, like a cold, you're sadly deluded.

If you think this sounds like ' conspiracy theorist ', which I'm not....perhaps those have said all this for 30 months...were right !

The war won't end . THINK !
Russia is a nuclear superpower.
Their nation adjoins China !!
They are allies.
They don't want UK or NATO on their doorstep.

Your Govt needs to provide energy & food : healthcare...
Not an neverending supply of bombs to fight a ear which can have no end...unless it's nuclear !!

Please THINK .
YOU HAVE BEEN LIED TO !

And Partygate & the other scandals was a trivial distraction from much bigger lies !

@Mxr the government is awful corrupt and has lied

but in such a more incompetent and prosaic way then you appear able to understand

if you object to supporting Ukraine against Russia then you are both dumb as batshit and immoral

quite agree the numbers are horrible and it’s probably a huge increase for many people. YABU to think it’s unsustainable-people adjust and adapt to new situations. In this case that their bills will be similar to what people in other countries have been paying for years. About average for a family home in Germany

I don’t believe this extreme right wing version of a Tory Government cares at all about that. It won’t be ‘their people’!

The problem is our wage stagnation and tax thresholds. That’s why it’s 100% worse here.

We’ve always had 3 minute showers, not because of the cost but for the environment. I understand that some people leave the shower running the whole time but it’s completely unnecessary. I turn it on to get wet, again to rinse off shampoo, and then finally to rinse off soap and conditioner.

Is that an electric shower? I tried it, but when you turn it back on it goes boiling hot briefly then freezing cold. I did start turning it onto half power (apparently more like two thirds really) while washing.

The idea of £6,000 a year is too terrifying to think about. And if I read one more thing about switching off at the sodding plug to save £50 a year or whatever it is. Last winter was cold, but we could at least have the heating on some of the time that DS was home, but I don't know what we'll do this winter, especially if he's still refusing to go to school.

I feel sick with worry most of the time - I have a pile of shit at work to deal with, trying to get DS some sort of help or support from somewhere, the school refusal, the massive increase in the cost of everything. I just don't know what we're going to do.

In that case & your abusive insults...
Be glad you're supporting the war with your bill payments.

Fyi check out Octopus CEO today.

Much as I would love to explain the real dynamics of what is , now, truly a dreadful situation in Ukraine, you clearly don't want facts.

Neither the Ukrainian nor russian ppl want war !
Funny then how the ppl of Britain do ?

Like I said, pay your bills, don't moan & be glad you're finding a ' humane war '.

Btw, no war is " humane "
This was never a " war " until zalensky recruited , mainly the UK, to give him what he wanted.

The post was about energy bills & inflation.
I've now told you shy it's going higher & higher.
There's no " batshit " in that.

Your right it's unsustainable. We won't have heating this year can't afford it, won't be keeping warm with hot drinks or meals either, be a lot of cold meals and one kettle boil a day, will be having mainly cold meals, having a gas day once a week where we make kiesh, pre-make some pasta or rice to last a few days, making potatoes salad, loaves etc to beat the initial higher 2kwh price and handwashing as much as possible, Will be relying on solar lighting, drastically trying to cut down our energy usage, showers literally soap then get in shower and less usage of things like the hoover. Have already started all this trying save what I can but winter I am dreading, I have OA had cold makes the pain worse and also severe asthmatic and prone to infections and pneumonia. Not going to rely on our government to step up and don't suggest anyone else does either but instead try work out ways to help you manage based on your situation. It's not going be fun but I will do what I have to to keep a roof over our heads, food in my kids bellys and will all be layering up, but also whilst trying to keep them happy. Lets just hope the prediction for a warm winter is correct.

Probably, yes, as the figure is going up at least £500 per annum each week.
I'm sure these numbers are just being made up.🙄

This is outdated. You have to work 16 hours when a child turns 4, it increases to full time when a child is 13. They make your life a living hell whilst you are claiming. There is very little help for those without children. If you’re self-employed they will treat you as if you are earning a full-time wage even if you’re not. If you are fully unemployed they will be on your back constantly and expect you to take any job. Have a look on some of the FB Universal Credit advice groups. There are people unable to pay bills now or eat - it’s quite desperate. Please don’t parrot Daily Mail divisive nonsense.

I'm a single pensioner in a freezing basement flat. I can't pay the bill now. I fully expect to die of hypothermia this winter . Who cares? Not this government for sure.

There will hopefully be civil unrest. This criminal government is determined to screw as much as possible out of everyone. They don’t care( in fact prefer) if the less productive sectors of society die. They are despicable, all the more so for pretending to care or help.

I’ve actually stopped paying my energy bill, I’m currently on JSA at £77 a week, my energy bill is £256 a month, I live on my own, don’t use my cooker, no tv as it’s broken, only do a wash load every week, shower every other day for about 5 mins, food bill is £5-£7 a week, had to sell a lot of my things just to pay some bills, scavenging around the house for a few pennies, I’ve secured a job but as it’s in care I need to wait for my DBS, don’t even open my post anymore & if the baliffs come they can take what the hell they want, I can’t even afford to go bankrupt!