Utility bills. How much????????????

[MOSagain]

I'm rather stunned to have just received letters from EDF regarding my gas and electricity saying they estimate my usage for the year (from last november to this November) will be a total of £3,958 This works out at approximately £330 pcm! WTF? I've been meaning to change providers or at least look at the options for months now but never seem to have the time.

I know prices are going up but surely this is ridiculous? I don't live in a palace. Any recommendations on other providers or any good deals going?

Is that from actual readings though? Do your meter readings and call them up, that does sound huge!

His big is your house?

Agree that you should check that your meter readings match theirs first. If their estimate of your future usage seems reasonable (you can work this out from past bills) then your next step is to make sure you're on their cheapest tarrif. If you still think you're being overcharged ... and the average annual bill for gas/electricity is about £1400/year... it's definitely time to go on some comparison sites and see if you can reduce the cost. Is your home well-insulated? Double glazing? Loft?

Goodness that seems massive!

We are not frugal with the heating or the electricity, our house is reasonably well insulated but by no means top-notch and we have a lot of appliances which are on a lot (tumble dryer every day, dishwasher etc). We pay £140 a month - and that is a newly agreed figure to cover actual current usage at the new increased prices.

It is worth taking a look at the energy saving tips on First Utilities website. I have reduced my usage by 25% by following the tips.
Also switching suppliers should help too.
Also worth looking at Green Deal to see if you can get some additional insulation which will help to reduce energy usage.
I am with First Utility on the smart tariff so only pay for what I use each month. Plus I use the energy dashboard to monitor that I am reducing usage as much as possible compared to average houses and most energy efficient houses.

What is it based on , was the house previously unoccupied for part of the year and they have perhaps just projected winter usage forwards ?

Lizs yes, you are right, house has been unoccupied for long periods of time over past 5 years (up to 9 months a year) and now we are home permenantly our bills have really shot up. Had some building work done last spring and think they have estimated based on that period. I've sent meter readings a few times but they seem to ignore them. Currently paying £120 and £94 but given the letter we've just received they will no doubt put the monthly payments up soon.

Its a 5 bedroom detached (one of the rooms is a loft conversion so assume that counts as insulated?) House is double glazed.

If you can't challenge the estimate successfully, have you thought about electing to pay your bills as they come rather than through monthly DD? You lose out on some of the incentives paid to DD customers but, on the other hand, you wouldn't have a huge balance building up with EDF

Thats what I was thinking Cogito, I'd rather put x pounds away every month in my account and pay the bills when they come in. A few years ago we were over £500 in credit with EDF and they wouldn't refund it.

British Gas and First Utility will both offer a smart meter, so you can pay monthly and simply pay exactly what you've used that month by direct debit - don't know if other providers offer it but I know these 2 definitely do.

Is it a modern house with cavity wall insulation? Our modern 5 bed is costing us about £150 per month. We are with First Utility as a result of going through price comparison websites. We read our own meters each month and then the bill comes by email. This month the bill was for £220 based on actual readings but is obviously less in warmer, lighter months. We pay the same each month and don't end up with a massive credit on our account. I got very pissed off with having a massive credit on our account with EDF - we aren't a bank and don't intend to lend money to energy companies.

I suggest following the advice here.

Yes, modern (well nearly 20 years old) house. Not heard of First Utility before so will look into that, thanks for recommendation.

Do the price comparison thing first as the market changes all the time. If you get a discounted rate for a few years then put a diary reminder in for a few weeks befre the date that the discount runs out so that you can shop around again.