Switching Providers

The market has become so competitive that a few of the comparison websites (moneysupermarket.com, energyhelpline.com) will actually pay you for switching as well as helping you to reduce your bills in the long run. Uswitch.com will do all the paperwork for you, ensuring that you are not left without electricity for any period of time. Plus they provide the customer with incentives to change suppliers. The companies receive commission from the utility companies when customers switch, with most of the benefit passed on to the customer.

You are free to change supplier as often as you like but obviously the saving will decrease each time. The only downside to uswitch.com is the requirement of a land line number for your application. This could prove problematic for students who only have mobile phones.

Energy suppliers are currently offering direct debit bills to lower income customers, but don’t be fooled into believing this is as good as it sounds. In some extreme cases instead of lowering the tariff which customers are on, the companies are simply lowering the direct debit charges and issuing customers with a large bill for the remainder, at the end of the contract.

Splitting the Bill Up Between Flatmates

Deciding whose name to put on the bill can lead to problems within shared accommodation. If there are a few of you, it might be possible to put all your names on the bill. So if one person leaves, the rest of you will not all be held accountable. It’s best to ask when signing the contract, what the best possible solution is for your situation.

Having a joint bank account with your flat mates solely for bills could be another alternative – HSBC and NatWest both have accounts which can have up to four different names on the account. This would allow all housemates to set-up a direct debit to this account, ensuring there is always enough money in the “pot” to pay the bills. The money left over at the end of the year can be split up between all the flatmates.

If there are more than 4 flatmates, allocating each person responsibility for one utility would ensure that everyone is taking responsibility for something and can understand the hassle it causes when money is not given in time.

How to get your flatmates to pay the bills

Some suggested examples of ways to get annoying flatmates to pay bills are as follows. None of these are designed to be hundred percent effective (or legal). These are merely advice from other students - the success rate is unknown.

1. Choose a bill out of all the household bills which you pay and is used the most i.e. internet. Phone the supplier and ask them to turn off the utility. Tell your housemates the supplier has turned it off because the bill was not paid. This should get everyone moaning at the non-payers, and hopefully they will pay up.
2. Ask a drama student friend to pretend to be a bailiff. When everyone is in the house, get ‘the bailiff’ to come round and shout through the letterbox. Tell your flatmates to stay put as if you let the bailiffs in they will take anything of any value – i.e. iPods, TVs, laptops etc.
3. Early in the morning turn off the electricity supply and go back to bed. When everyone wakes pretend to phone the electricity company and claim they will only put it back on if the bill is paid asap.
4. Phone your flatmates parents and tell them

How to Pay

There are four different methods of payment available:

Paying via monthly instalments, usually by direct debit, is the option most likely to offer some kind of discount.  Companies are benefiting because (in general) you won’t default, and any overpayment which you pay will gather interest for them, before being refunded at the end of the year.

Pay point

This method is when the utility company sends the customer a kind of charge card, and when the bill comes in you simply take the card to be paid. It is a useful tool for customers who have run up big bills and can’t pay their debt all at once.

Meters

This is a “pay as you go” method and enables customers to pay before use. There are two downsides to this method of payment – it is the most expensive form of utility supply (it often costs to have the meter installed and the utility cost has the highest mark-up). Secondly, it is very easy to disconnect yourself by forgetting to top up your card.

If you can’t pay

Paying your electricity or gas is a priority but if you do find yourself unable to pay contact your supplier who may be able to offer some kind of payment scheme, or allow you to switch to a metered system of payment.

If you can’t pay and don’t contact your supplier, they will send a reminder notices demanding payment within a short time frame. If you ignore these, you will receive a “Final Notice” demanding payment in 7 days or legal proceedings against you will commence.

Saving Money on your Energy Bill

• Shop around for the best deals:
• uswitch.com
• switchwithwhich.co.uk
• buy.co.uk
• saveonyourbills.com
• Turning down your thermostat a degree or two can save you 5-10% on your bill, and you probably won’t even notice the difference
• Don’t leave the heating on all day
• Cook everything that needs to go in the oven at once
• Switch off lights when you’re not in a room
• Only fill the kettle with as much water as you need, it will boil quicker and use less electricity
• Only use the washing machine and dishwasher when they are full, and use the economy cycle
• When boiling pasta or potatoes use a lid – it’ll cook faster saving you electricity
• Use energy saving light bulbs – they use 80% less energy than traditional light bulbs
• Unplug appliances when they are fully charged, as they will continue to draw electricity
• If you have use a lot of different computer accessories (printers, scanners, Skype phone etc) why not invest in a special adapter from oneclickpower.com which turns off all equipment once the computer is turned off