Energy/maths dunce here I need help please?

[Graphista]

Currently with edf I fixed until July 2024 when it was looking like that was the right thing to do, wondering now if that was a mistake?

Took meter readings today, they said I need to give an up to date meter reading to potentially get a refund for whatever I'm in credit by according to them?

When I spoke with them on that occasion I also reduced my direct debit, again wondering if this was a mistake but I am really struggling (disabled on benefits, trying to ease back into working in the way I can but no income as yet)

I've got a note on phone of all meter reading since I moved in here in February. Electric usage between last reading and this one seems crazy high and I don't know why, I'm not using anything high energy to my knowledge and it's only me here. I turn lights off when not in use, turn things off when not in use though I'll admit tech things I tend to keep constantly plugged in/charging. But no dishwasher or tumble dryer or anything like that.

I'm kinda nervous to submit these readings but know that's essentially me sticking head in sand.

I'm terrified they're gonna whack my DD up as a result and no refund or even worse a big bill to pay that I can't.

Can anyone help me figure it all out and perhaps provide a little reassurance?

I genuinely struggle with maths and stuff like this makes me super anxious.

Don't panic!

What readings do you have?
Do you know what rate/kwH you're on? And what standing charge?

Do you have a copy of your last bill? It usually tells you somewhere on there the calculation they use to turn the readings into kwH and work out the cost from there.

You can use that to work out roughly what you've used since Feb and then compare to what you've paid so far.

If you post the figures, we can try and help calculate it.

Also, check you're reading the meter correctly: www.edfenergy.com/for-home/help-centre/faq/meter-readings#chapter-23140

If you are directly comparing the gas and electric readings, this is probably where the issue lies. My gas meter appears to show very few 'units' compared to my electric meter. But that is because each increment on the gas meter costs way, way more than each increment on the electric meter.

Were the readings for your last bill ACTUAL not Estaimated?

Just post on here (like PPs have said)
Your previous reading from the bill (end reading)
And your most recent reading, that you have taken?
And the rate you are charged per kWh (and if the VAT is added as another step on the bill) and the daily standing charge.

One for Electricity....
And also for Gas if that is a worry as well.

I can do the maths for you from that info.

Remember that usually the Gas units from your meter readings are further multipled - by about 11.2 - for the kWh before the other calculations can be caried out.

In terms of use, simply put, it is usually things that make heat or have a motor/element that cost more to run. Lights and tech charging are negligible,, unless you have a lot.

Thank you!

I have the following readings :

25/2/22 move in readings

Gas - 7295
Electric - 25752

3/4/22

Gas - 7309
Electric - 25951

9/5/22 (taken by electrician not me
and I think is wrong)

Electric - 26543

Cos

8/9/22

Gas - 7384
Electric - 26415

23/11/22

Gas - 7433
Electric - 27237

The gas is easy to read, the electric meter is on the sodding ceiling and the display is dark grey on grey and hard to read.

Current tariff details are -

Electric
Standing charge 49.65 pence per day
Unit rate 33.76 pence per kWh

Gas
Standing charge 27.22 pence per day
Unit rate 10.277 pence per kWh

By my own maths I think that's working out to around £85 a month electric and £20 a month gas - but I've only just put my heating on.

I'm also new to having a working thermometer in this place. Still working out what temp is right for me/this place.

Bills are on the app I can maybe screenshot and scribble out identifying info?

Were the readings for your last bill ACTUAL not Estaimated?

Actual as in read and submitted by me on the app.

One person household but high ceilinged old tenement flat, once warm well insulated but can be hard to heat up.

I've had several colds/bugs this last month and I think that may in part be down to being cold/scared to turn heating on. Also laundry taking forever to dry which is proving a difficulty for me.

I'm also confused by £66 refunds and credits which I think are to do with me being eligible for help cos I'm disabled and on higher rate pip.

There's quite a lot to unpack there Graph

Those prices look like the price cap, and as for whether you were right to fix until 2024, and whether you still are on the fix, or you've been moved from your fix to the price cap, it's hard to say as, over the last few months there's been so many changes in the energy market.

A few months ago, there were predictions of bills being £5/6/7k for typical use and any long term fixes would have taken this into account (expensive).

Then the Government announced the 2 year price freeze at £2500 for typical use and people who were on fixes above this amount will either have been moved down to this amount automatically or given the choice to do so.

However then the Government went back on the 2 year freeze and said it would only be six months, but there would be targeted help from April 2023 that I would hope that someone in your circumstances would qualify for.

Then they said something about a £3k freeze for typical use from April 2023 for a length of time I cannot remember. So with all those changes, I'm not sure if there would have been people who have been moved off fixes they would have been better off staying on and what would happen to people in that position.

Anyway, Moneysaving Expert has a 'check your DD' calculator and the other thing they're very good at is signposting to help with costs, extra grants etc to vulnerable people, so I'd have a look at:

www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/lower-energy-direct-debits/#calc

and

www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2022/11/government-extends-energy-support-from-april/

Which seems to indicate that you'll get an extra £1050 (£900 and £150) next year due to receiving universal credit and disability benefits, so I would have thought that would be a big help?

First thing I would say is, when did your tariff start, do you know?
(Mine only went up enormously on 1 Oct, for instance)I would be surprised if the Elec as at that rate fom the start - nevertheless - as I am sure you can tell.

From moving in then, you have overall used, and based on the tariff you have said -
1485 kWh of Electricity and
138 UNITS of Gas - which might equal around 1540 kWh, depending on their conversion equation.
{I have discounted the Electrician's reading, as it starightens itself out after that.)
You have started to use more electricity between Sept and now - do you have electric heaters?

So since 25/2 to 23/11 - what you have used would cost:
Elec - £502.34
Gas - £175.67
(IF my calculations to convert Gas unts to kWh is correct).
That includes the respective daily standing charges for 231 days.

Have you paid them about this much, by whichever means? You haven't said what you have been paying on your Direct Debit so far....

As you have not had a winter there yet, it is not as easy to forecast - but start with daily, if you can, readings, or weekly, so that then typical day or week of usage can be used for a projection.

So how does that align with what you have paid so far - remembering of course, that no matter what you use to heat, the use WILL go up - unless you don't put any heating on God forbid. And more so for electric means of heating.

You should, agree with PP, be getting the £66 per month credited to your account (check that this does not get put into your Bank by EDF, in which case, you can easly just send it it back as a payment on your account) for a few months, so that will help - but you need to check with EDF themselves; also possibly the Warm Home Discount, but I think that is based on having received it last year - but there is an additional £150 I think, from the Gvnmt which "replaces" it for those who get PIP or similar.

But, unless you have not paid (which you have), I don't think you should worry about submitting them at this point and you will then have hopefully a bill/statement to work with for the upcoming months.

I can do more maths if you need. x

You have used 882kwh of electricity from September 2nd or about 11kwh per day. As the price cap is based on an average household using 2900kwh/year or about 8kwh a day that does seem high for one person.

(Sorry, September 8th).

Just to point out though, that the "Price Cap" is basically meaningless flimflam, and SO many people thought that they could not be charged over a year more than, say £2500 (I can't remember what it was, as I have not taken any notice of it) when, really, what they can or will be charged is dependent upon usage and kWh price.
As Martin Lewis pointed out, they can and will be chatrged more than the Price Cap, which is really applied to the charges that the Energy companies can make to the customer.

Your usage for both leccy and gas is quite low, as one of the previous posters has kindly calculated for you, so don’t panic. What is your direct debit? Mine was £110 since April.
I m also with EDF and submitted meter readings just a couple of days ago. As I built quite a bit of the credit over the summer, they will be crediting back my bank account on the 25th. I would prefer them not too and rather keep the money in the account for the expensive winter months, but that’s what EDF do, apparently.

I would check that last electricity one as :

04/04-08/09 is 157 days and you used 464kWh
but
09/09-23/11 is 75 days and you used 822kWh

(822 x 41.928) / 100 = £344.65, plus standing charge of 75 days at 52.733p = £39.55.

Does this maths seem right to people?

aw crap used my rates

corrected :

(822 x 33.76) / 100 = £277.51, plus standing charge of 75 days at 49.65p = £37.24.

@BarbaraofSeville there is a lot to unpack that's why I get anxious and so confused.

I think prices are the price cap but wasn't sure and unsure where to check this.

I'll check the Mse calculator thank you I didn't know they had that now.

Yes I'm eligible for the £1050 help next year but at the moment I'm trying to deal with current costs inc Christmas

@LoveMyPiano I don't know what previous tariffs were or prices or when this one kicked in, I think July seeing as July 2024 is when fix ends and I think it was a 24 month fix.

You have started to use more electricity between Sept and now - do you have electric heaters?

I have a fan heater but haven't used it in the time you queried. I used it earlier in the year and figured out it cost a fortune to run and so now I'm very reluctant to use it.

I have been home more and so just using more energy at home generally (lights etc I'm in Scotland so it gets dark VERY early esp if the weather is gloomy) but I don't think my use should be as high as it appears something seems wonky somewhere.

Have you paid them about this much, by whichever means? You haven't said what you have been paying on your Direct Debit so far....

I have paid so far :

March £32.21
April - sep £101 a month
Oct & nov £80 a month

As you have not had a winter there yet, it is not as easy to forecast

Yea I get that and it worries me a great deal.

Can't do daily readings as they're so awkward to get to can do weekly maybe.

The £66 a month I've had one payment into my bank account and 2 credits to the edf account.

I applied for warm home discount but haven't heard anything about that so I'm assuming I missed out (I usually do)

@AtomicBlondeRose I agree but I can't figure out why? I know I'm
using more lighting but I'm very good about only using lights in the room I am in, I don't do loads of oven cooking mostly Microwave or hob if any (induction hob not sure if that makes a difference). I have my tech on (laptop, tablet and phone) as I'm using these to return to work hopefully. I don't have a tv I mostly listen to radio either on my dab radio or echo dot.

If anyone can help me figure out why my usage is higher than average considering I live alone that would be great.

@LoveMyPiano yea I do understand what you said re price cap myths

@Onegingerhead I'd rather the money was in my hands to control so opposite to you.

I'm also wondering if switching is back to being something useful to do? As I've not heard good things about edf and I think the govt said in the things they announced about the price cap (after loads of us had fixed!) was that even if you'd fixed you could still switch but that's not a high priority for me right now.

@LogicallyLost I agree something weird there and I don't know what. I don't think I've used that much more energy in that time I think something off with meter maybe? It's bloody hard to read due to a crap display!

Ok, so the things you mention - lights, microwave/hob, laptop/tablet/phone and smart speakers - are all really quite low energy use. You can basically use all of those as much as you want without worrying about the cost.

Anything that heats or cools costs money. However your fridge/freezer is always on so won’t have changed recently. Fan heater will be about 34p/hour for most of them but that’s only running full pelt and would cost less than that in real life usage. Washing machine doesn’t cost much, tumble drier would if you have one.

A sudden rise would suggest something is on that shouldn’t be. Could you have an immersion heater that’s been switched on my accident (mine has a switch in the airing cupboard that’s very easy to knock on). Another thought is underfloor heating or a heated towel rail which can use a lot of electricity.

I think some of the electricity readings there are a bit screwy.

If the move in reading is correct and the 23/11 reading is correct, then as PP has calculated that's 1485 units over 271 days, which is around 5.5 units per day. Average usage for a 1 / 2 person household in a 1 bed flat / house is 5 units per day so sounds about right.

So that would be 2007 kWh over 365 days, which equates to £678 for electricity usage and £181 standing charge, 5% VAT gives you £902 per year or £75.20 per month.

But that does assume those 2 readings are correct.

A sudden rise would suggest something is on that shouldn’t be. Could you have an immersion heater that’s been switched on my accident (mine has a switch in the airing cupboard that’s very easy to knock on). Another thought is underfloor heating or a heated towel rail which can use a lot of electricity.

Don't have any of those.

@Dreikanter the problem is the electric meter is very awkward to read due to both location and the poor display screen which is also affected by location as it means it's shadowed. I need to get a ladder & torch for doing the readings really.

On hold with edf now they've already cut me off once after a painful conversation where she was supposed to transfer me to the appropriate dept as she couldn't discuss billing with me.

Have you been using the oven more regularly in the last 2 months? I just checked on the EDF energy hub and the days we use the oven (weekends) it’s between 5 and 6 kW (3-4 kW a day if not cooking).
Tumble dryer is also known to be power hungry

No tumble dryer just an airer and laundry taking FOREVER to dry!

Yes using oven more now as colder weather so wanting hot dinners but only maybe 1-2 times a week if that?

I think there's a good possibility that the electricians reading was right, and that you've misread the September one slightly- 26915, not 26415 (done it myself before). This would mean that there's not a sudden jump, and even out your readings more.

Your electric usage isn't massive, by any stretch.

Possible the display is a pain to read and I can see I could have misread 9 as 4. Display is like an old school calculator with lines for each part of the digit with the time when all lines appear would be for the figure 8? I hope that makes sense so a 4 is like an upside down lower case h?

Can you take a pic of the meter from below and then zoom into it?