Winter or fuel bills

[securespark]

I have just swapped from Npower to M&S Energy (SSE) for a deal recommended by uswitch.

A week after I put the ball in motion to swap, I got a letter from Npower informing me that the monthly DD would be increasing to.......get this...........

£221 / month (dual fuel).

I'm now paying £140.

Good job I'm moving is all I can say.

 

[chainsaw_masochist]

Mike, are you MickeyMoody with a new username?

Doubt it, the spelling is too good.

Is this not the fundamental problem, though?

Since realising this I am now covered in two or three layers of clothing, turned down heating my heating from average 21c to 19c, and lighting and around 20 appliances switched off from standby.

Can you not manage in an environment at 17°c? I certainly do not require the fleece-lined jockstrap at this temperature. Guess it's different srokes for different folks, though.

 

[AronSearle]

Is this not the fundamental problem, though? |

Hell, this is 2013, maintaining 21c, and doing so with little cost is perfectly reasonable.

Instead we have millions of people who still haven't bothered about loft insulation (even when it was being given away for £1 a roll), and no end of idiots that when you talk about floor insulation, parrot "heat rises so what's the point", not releasing how retarded they are for saying that.

Then those same people will whine about green taxes and high energy bills.

Flog the lot of them!

 

[JBR]

I have just swapped from Npower to M&S Energy (SSE) for a deal recommended by uswitch.

A week after I put the ball in motion to swap, I got a letter from Npower informing me that the monthly DD would be increasing to.......get this...........

£221 / month (dual fuel).

I'm now paying £140.

Good job I'm moving is all I can say.

A lesson for us all. The only way to beat the system is to change suppliers. The trouble is that all the big companies seem to do the same thing: one puts their prices up and the others follow soon afterwards.

There are some smaller companies that buck the trend and, according to the lists (like Which? magazine), undercut the big boys. Unfortunately, they only seem to cover certain areas.

The only way anything is going to change is for everyone, and I mean everyone, to change to the cheapest company they can find and then keep doing so if their choice does the dirty on them.

I'm on a fixed tariff with Scottish Power but, when it is up, I'll be looking around again.

 

[Mikefromlondon]

Indeed, a bit like car insurance now, last year one of my car was insured for £170 and this year they offered to renew it for £466, there was no way i was going to pay this amount for a car that I rarely drive, much rather get rid of it, and they will lose all my business.

Therefore I used a new comparison site called Moneysupermarket.com and was pleasantly surprised when it came up with a quote of only £154.00 fully comp cheaper than even last year!

But when I called my previous insurance company who gave me that shocking renewal - up nearly 3 times, from £170 to £466, their explanation was that it was the best quote they could come up with, as the company underwriting my previous insurance would not consider me for insurance this year - for what reason is beyond me! I had no accidents or made any claims and car is driven less than 100 miles per year as it is a classic car and they said the only other cheapest underwriters came up with this £466 quote!

Last year I used Confused .com, but this year I used a different comparison site moneysupermarket.com. I suggest not only do you use different Comparison sites, as even between different comparison sites there can be miles of difference in price.

Indeed one can break the monopoly of bigger companies, switching to a SMALLER COMPANY offering a lot better deal, however, remember, I am with Eon, who are according to me cheaper overall than any of the other big companies, and not too bad because by the time you add their discount scheme like they give me 6% discount for dual fuel, this is applied to each utility bill separately, then I get a further 2% towards each utility ( Gas and Electric separately) for Direct Debit on each bill, that means 8% off, and then I get a further 2% combined for both bills for going paperless, that means one of my bills gets 10% reduction and the other one 8% reduction, which really helps, and works out substantial discount (total almost 18% combined) in that it cancels the effect of standing charge! or even goes past it reducing the cost further, So when comparing charges bear these discounts in your calculations.

But beware of their trick, they had been asking me to combine both my bills on one, which I am refusing, as that would mean my discount would then come down from 18% to 10%, so avoid this pitfall, I like both my bills separate.

 

[KenGMac]

Interesting postings by all.

Lets have a look at the "GREEN TAX?"

In effect the Energy Suppliers are "funding" the installation of say, loft Insulation, Cavity wall insulation, and up here in the Frozen north [Scotland] if you are over a "Certain Age" and you do not have a Central heating system installed. or if you do not have any C/Heating at all then at NO COST your home will be fitted with a gas condensing boiler plus all the radiators Etc.

Now what has happened?

In places this "green tax" windfall has been "avidly" and quite correctly "grabbed" by the local authorities to get all the council properties they own insulated for FREE ! wOUCHA ! As far as the Council is concerned that is a winner.

Two years ago I was working for a "Contractor" who had a long standing Maintenance Contract with a local Council there was a rolling programme of cavity wall insulation on-going.

I talked to a few "residents" that recall their homes had been cavity wall insulated several years before. only to find that the same walls in the same properties were again being "insulated"

Now who is funding all of this?

I have seen dozens of Job Adverts for "Cavity wall Insulation Surveyors" really big kicker is the AD states that NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY ! what does that tell you?

We are all paying for this GREEN TAX unfortunately my property, built Circa 1822 has masonry [stone block] external walls, lathe and plaster internal finishes, I already have a Condensing boiler plush a flushed out C/Heating system, all Rads. have TRVs. Why tell you this? Because there is nothing at all that I can claim from the system that would improve my insulation, the property is also "listed" so I can not apply any external insulation?

My thoughts are that there is a "possibility" that the firms that are "installing" the Government Instructed Insulation MAY need some scrutiny?

Any thoughts anyone?

Has anyone ANY information as regards the Installation of insulation? walls or roofs.

And finally, [at last] has anyone come across a government installed loft insulation where either the perimeter vents have been cut off by the newly installed insulation? OR has anyone found a loft stuffed full of insulation BUT no ventilation?

Grumpy, Ken

 

[Mikefromlondon]

Ken, for about 2 years now, my door bell was constantly ringing, door to door salesman offering free insulation! I used to refuse on the bases that there is no such thing as a free lunch, someone somewhere must be paying for it, so I used to argue with these people and refuse to let them sign me on.

What i found was that although free insulation had been available for a very long time now, for many many years but to only those who were either past 65 or those on benefits, so i used to tell them that I do not qualify for it as I am not on benefits.

Then last month another sales person came over, and I argued with him there is no free lunch and I am not on benefits, so he said Oh this is a new scheme called CSCO, (Carbon Saving Community Obligation) and as well as ECO (Energy Company Obligation) in which the main energy companies contribute the cost by collecting it for the government as a green tax I believe, through higher bills, in other words we are paying for it ourselves!

so all that bull about free loft insulation is just a gimmick!


and an area is chosen based on some silly criteria, and my area fell under this criteria and so I was therefore entitled to this free loft and cavity wall insulation absolutely free, regardless of my working/employment/benefit/age status.

So only then I signed on, and had 270mm pile of loft insulation installed.
In the ended the sales people were very persistent, and the company who carried out this came all the way from Leicester to do a job in London! there must be huge amount of rewards for them in this, at of course our expense and taxpayers expense, nothing in this universe is free I am afraid.


Another interesting claim by my Local Council (Newham) that they offer free disposal service for heavy unwanted items, we just got to ring them or book on their website to get it removed for free!

Then I noticed a couple of law enforcement officers from Newham Council were disputing with my neighbour over some old furniture he had discarded in his front garden, he left it there as many poor people simply take others old furniture for their second use, so why dump it in landfill!

But the two enforcement officers were trying to issue a warning or a penalty notice for keeping your own front garden untidy (nanny state)

I butted in, and said what is the problem? I haven't complained about this old sofa, my neighbour left in his front garden, so why do they want to give him a penalty, it is afterall in his own property, their excuse was that it attracts vermin, and I said that is utter rubbish, the vermins live all over no matter what.

They then said that since Newham Council offers free disposal service so there is non excuse not to call them and book a collection, so I said why don't you do that now that you are aware there is an abandoned piece of furniture, so you might as well arrange for its collection instead of issuing a penalty, and further more I( said there is no such thing as a free service, we pay for this through our council tax.

Then I said if you really want to offer a free service then ask the Mayor of Newham Sir robin Wales to come in his own car outside the office hours and then collect it in his own unpaid time and in his own car and then I will accept that it is a free service!

both officers agreed with me and then walked away without giving a penalty notice but asked the owner to arrange for a collection!

 

[JBR]

Interesting postings by all.

Lets have a look at the "GREEN TAX?"

Grumpy, Ken

I thought 'green taxes' were there to pay for pretty windmills that look nice on the horizon but don't actually do anything except keep the greenies happy.

 

[Shutpa]

Its no joke though, in two days I used £30.00 worth of gas and electricity.

Good job you dont use that every day of the year or your annual bill would be around £5,500. I live in a 5 bedroom house and our annual bill is roughly £1300.

Edit: Am I right in thinking that you use as much in the 3 winter months than I use in the whole year?

 

[AronSearle]

We are all paying for this GREEN TAX unfortunately my property, built Circa 1822 has masonry [stone block] external walls, lathe and plaster internal finishes, I already have a Condensing boiler plush a flushed out C/Heating system, all Rads. have TRVs. Why tell you this? Because there is nothing at all that I can claim from the system that would improve my insulation, the property is also "listed" so I can not apply any external insulation?

Long term I would argue the following for such properties.

If they are listed, then everyone has to chip in for the increased cost of heating them (If society wants buildings protected, society should pay for it). Though I would cap such payments depending on the homeowners wage.

Or, get rid of the listing and externally insulate (do we really need <400,000 listed buildings)?.

 

[EddieM]

I find 10 ° C to be about the limit, then a little heating is required we've all gone soft with all this central heating malarkey.

 

[masona]

we have millions of people who still haven't bothered about loft insulation (even when it was being given away for £1 a roll),

Surprising how many people don't know about the free boiler and insulation if they qualify for the schemes, so far I have told 2 people and they've now got new boilers!

 

[Mikefromlondon]

trouble is this offer sounds too good to be true so most people brush it aside, as there must be a catch kind of suspicion, however not everyone is entitled to them, people on low income or those on benefits etc can qualify.

 

[Whitespirit66]

I find 10 ° C to be about the limit, then a little heating is required we've all gone soft with all this central heating malarkey.

Obviously the words of a single man.

 

[EddieM]

I find 10 ° C to be about the limit, then a little heating is required we've all gone soft with all this central heating malarkey.

Obviously the words of a single man.

I'm not single, just hard as nails.... no seriously I have a slightly overactive thyroid so my body thermostat runs a bit high, anything over 25 ° c I run into trouble !!