How cold is it where you are?

[Icanthinkformyselfthanks]

Are you worried about the old people who are too concerned about paying their bills because they’ve lost their WFA to put their heating on/up?

@selffellatingouroborosofhate , babies and the disabled receive extra benefits.

I was being sarcastic!! My dh gets this as a retied old (obviously, nasty vicious brexit voting hater of everyone ...again, sarcasm) and my wage on top (nhs) really isn't much help...

Thank you to everyone who responded, I found your comments illuminating to say the least!
The views of some respondents are so repugnant to me that I feel shame at belonging to the same species.
It appears that there are feelings of envy and contempt directed at the elderly by quite a lot of people. Older people aren’t responsible for the undeniable fact that young people have to spend a disproportionately high level of their money on housing and if I’m missing something and they are I’m certain that this will not be deliberately orchestrated. The level of entitlement and selfishness in some responses makes me fear for the future of our society. Finally I have to say I’m really surprised. I had expected very different policies from a Labour government and after years of those on the left of politics accusing those on the right of being uncaring and nasty it seems that the opposite is true. I apologise to those left leaning people who have read this far who don’t align themselves with this dreadful policy and the callous disregard for some of the most vulnerable in society I have seen on this thread. I hope you and all who you love can keep warm this winter. 🙏🏻

How is gas and electric over £200pm?

I pay £126, which is the Octopus requirement for my usage, and I'm always in credit. The last couple of years I've just paid the bill as it arrives and it's usually been £50-70. That's been the actual cost.

This month it might go to c£200, because of the cold snap, but it's nothing like that on a monthly basis. Some summer months it's c£30.

I live in a three bed terrace, no internal doors downstairs which is a bit of a pain, and I have the rads on in every room as I dry my clothes in the two spare rooms. I'm home most of the time as I wfh. Admittedly I don't leave it on overnight. But I do also use a normal oven (no air fryer) and a tumble dryer.

So, why is a pensioner, in general (we're not talking about one specific person here) paying over £200 every month?

Hideous attitudes aren't they? I rarely wish poverty and suffering on people, but some comments make me so angry. We (us miserable old fuckers) are all somehow responsible for everythingt hat has happened in the last 40 odd years and we all deserve to die.

That is what my 93 yr old father pays on direct debit. He has a heart condition and reynauds so really feels the cold. I am sure he isn’t the only pensioner who has similar monthly direct debits. The monthly payments are constant because it is averaged out over the year so that he doesn’t get a massive debit in the winter. For various reasons, older people may have to wash clothes, bedding daily, use dryers, electric on constantly for medical equipment …growing old comes at a financial cost as well as health. This is why pensions do not go far, The elderly are unable to do things we take for granted like cutting the grass, simple diy jobs, they have to pay for everything.

From what I've noticed with my parents...
They are home the beast majority of the day. They are sedentary at home (with a bit of housework etc)
They feel cold when the house gets below 20.

As a more active younger adult... home less, moving more... can cope with a base of 16, with a boost morningcand evening to 20

Unsurprisingly, my parents bills are a lot more than mine!!

There are NON-elderly vulnerable people suffering tonight too. Why you should believe otherwise is difficult for me to comprehend.

You asked in your OP if people are worried about the elderly because of the winter fuel allowance has been stopped for some? MY answer is no. I can't do much about it if you don't like my answer. That's your problem to deal with. Good luck with that.

Point out on this thread where anyone has said that pensioners deserve to die.

You can't can you?

Because no-one has said it.

What a silly and over dramatic post from you. 🙄

Older people aren’t responsible for the undeniable fact that young people have to spend a disproportionately high level of their money on housing

They largely are responsible: Right To Buy, which was the sale of council houses at knock-down prices to tenants, took swathes of social housing away from the current young people, whilst transferring taxpayers' money that had built that social housing to individuals who are now elderly in the form of house equity.

Quite a lot of disabled people are waiting for their PIP claims to be processed, are awaiting an appeal outcome, or gave up trying to claim because the PIP system is so inhumane. These people are disabled and not receiving extra benefits.

@SabreIsMyFave , I do worry about anyone who can’t keep warm and I have never suggested that I don’t however my post concerned in particular elderly people who have had their WFA taken away. No amount of whataboutery will stop them from freezing to death in these temperatures. I acknowledge that this is something which does not concern you. Unbelievable.

@Icanthinkformyselfthanks

....my post concerned in particular elderly people who have had their WFA taken away.

I acknowledge that this is something which does not concern you. Unbelievable.

Finally you got it. Well done! 👏

@selffellatingouroborosofhate , it was not their choice to make that policy which I agree has had negative consequences.

Yes this. ^ There is a certain 'I'm all right Jack' mentality in some people who managed to buy their council house in the 1980s, and many paid between seven and twenty grand back then.

Many of these people don't give a shit that MANY young people will never be able to own a property, as the deposit alone (for many) is anything between 5 to 10 times more than these people PAID for their house some 35-40 years ago.

So some people have had their £300 winter fuel allowance taken off them ... Big deal. They have had a decent rise in their pension, and some have claimed pension credits recently too. So they are no worse off!!

Cry me a river. 🙄

.

Quite. Many disabled people use more than the average person, when it comes to using electricity, such as having to keep warm, running oxygen machines, having to have medical equipment on the charge etc. Many will struggle financially in Winter, especially.

Well said.

Boiler broke last night so no heating or hot water at all over the weekend. No idea how cold it is but I'm wrapped up in a duvet and it feels like -120

-18 here last night. We checked on our two nearest elderly neighbours this morning and one had their open fires on and the other their log burner. We are very rural though and most people have another form of heating.

I don’t like the ‘I’m alright Jack’ attitudes of some on this thread, it’s very disheartening to see this attitude and people forget that not everyone has huge pensions to be able to afford to heat their homes when they get older.

1. The nation voted in a Tory govt who made that policy.
2. Exercising RTB was a free choice that council tenants didn't have to make.

Aye. People talk about having to choose between heating and eating. Imagine having to choose between heating and breathing...

The poorest elderly people are still getting WFA.

His direct debit is over £200pm, yes?

But how much is it costing him?

The reason I moved to paying the bills as they came was because Eon kept insisting I needed to pay £400pm. When my actual spend was more like £50pm. There was no talking to them. I went to paying bills only (still by DD, so still got the DD discount) and it was a YEAR before I actually paid anything as they were using up the credit first. (I know I am lucky that I don't need to worry about monthly budgeting and getting into deficit)

It's actually scandalous how they do it. I lost patience after having two £1k refunds from them and they STILL wouldn't put it down. I could show them spreadsheets of usage going back years, but no.

So, ignore what you pay to the provider, and work out the cost of what you use. It's quite enlightening. I moved to Octopus, and their app is great at telling you how much each day has cost (linked to my smart meter). So it's very easy to keep track of.
My mum's house, in the current cold snap, which is far bigger than mine, was £167 last month.

I know people use more for lots of reasons by the way. But the post I was replying to said "bills are over £200pm".

@SabreIsMyFave ,

Thank you to everyone who responded, I found your comments illuminating to say the least!
The views of some respondents are so repugnant to me that I feel shame at belonging to the same species.
It appears that there are feelings of envy and contempt directed at the elderly by quite a lot of people. Older people aren’t responsible for the undeniable fact that young people have to spend a disproportionately high level of their money on housing and if I’m missing something and they are I’m certain that this will not be deliberately orchestrated. The level of entitlement and selfishness in some responses makes me fear for the future of our society. Finally I have to say I’m really surprised. I had expected very different policies from a Labour government and after years of those on the left of politics accusing those on the right of being uncaring and nasty it seems that the opposite is true. I apologise to those left leaning people who have read this far who don’t align themselves with this dreadful policy and the callous disregard for some of the most vulnerable in society I have seen on this thread. I hope you and all who you love can keep warm this winter. 🙏🏻

Yes, I agree. I don't wish for any elderly people going cold through lack of money, or anybody else. I just wish that the Government would do more to protect the people from these greedy energy companies. There are so many vulnerable people suffering, it should not be like that.

The level wfa kicks in at is far too low.
the rise in pension is well and truly swallowed up by increase in COL
also by default pensioners are at home more so need more heating