ENERGY COMPANIES GOING BUST

Martin Lewis is also on ITV at 8.30 tonight with, I am sure, some very useful advice.

Ultimately though we will all have to accept that our fuel bills will go up, once we come to the end of a fixed rate deal.

I guess this is the rainy day which our mothers and grandmothers urged us to have a contingency fund for.

Unfortunately I have just moved from Shell to Avro - the changeover date is 28 Sept, so not with Avro yet. However, Avro have taken their 1st DD payment on 20 Sept. Unfortunately, I am outside the 14 day cancellation period. What a mess!

If someone is actually left without a supplier, because the 'big boys' refuse to take them on, I wonder what could happen. Short of actually going to someone's house and physically turning off the supply at the mains I don't see how they could cut them off . We are all supplied from the same pipes, after all. Can someone more expert than I explain?

Pammie1

Just seen on Sky News that BP are closing petrol stations due to the problem with lorry drivers. What next ?!?

My local Facebook page is full of people complaining that they can't get any unleaded from local petrol stations. A couple of people have had to abandon their cars because they ran out of fuel. One lady had to ring up her work and take time off work until she could arrange a lift. The reason being given is deliveries.

Those of you who have large amounts of credit with your utility company are a good arguement for Smart meters.
We are with Ovo and have complete control over our bills daily with hourly gas and electricity readings.
I simply change my next Direct Debit amount to cover the bill using the convenient app.
We now have smart water meters too.
No more of our cash sitting in big companies banks!

What is so outrageous is that the price of gas/electricity will increase at a higher rate for those on pay as you go meters, all too frequently renters with no other option from the landlord. As these are sometimes the less well off in our ‘caring society’ it will have a disproportionately harder effect on these people. As will the anticipated rise in food prices!

We have been with British gas for over 50 years, any problems we have had with them have been sorted out, once with the ombudsman getting involved......I will not move from them, even if they put the price up (before this debacle) my argument is if one company puts up the price, the others always follow like sheep, so whats the point of moving around? I know that's not everyone's point of view, but it's worked for us. I pay by payment card (one for gas, one for electricity) alternate weeks, as long as I pay the minimum amount they quote me its fine, I pay more when I feel we have used more. At the end of August each year if we are in credit (we usually are) they take some of the monies to start the account up again and the remainder I get back as cheques, (home/content insurance due around that time, so this does help).

Pammie1

Just seen on Sky News that BP are closing petrol stations due to the problem with lorry drivers. What next ?!?

Last week, we were away on holiday, down Dorset way.

Although it wasn't urgent at the time, we would have liked to top up with diesel, but kept passing filling stations where the only diesel available was the most expensive type.
That led us to suspect there and then that trouble must be brewing regarding fuel supplies.

We were quite surprised not to see or hear any mention of this issue in the media.

Luckily, we did manage to fill up on our journey home, but it now seems, unfortunately, that we were right about trouble brewing !

Last time I changed suppliers, about a year ago, I told the chap organising it that I had been talking to Bulb. He told me that they were shortly going to be in financial trouble. Looks as if he was right.

*MamaCaz8 we look at different media. This topic was discussed extensively on Radio 4 today and there have been other references in the media over the last few days.

Martin Lewis has just advised on his TV show that all customers of the Energy companies who have gone bust,
should check their online Account and if they are in credit
they should screen-shot the page showing what they are owed (or take a photo with your mobile ‘phone).
He says it’s important to do it as once those Companies take their websites down customers won’t have access to their account.
They will be moved to one of the Big Six energy companies and their energy supply should not be interrupted.

Our energy supplier, Avro, went bust yesterday.
When DH looked earlier today, their web site had disappeared.
So we were interested when ML suggested taking a screen shot.
However, the web site was back a while ago, and stated that all credit was safe. ?. We shall see.

What with energy companies going bust, supermarkets short of food, no drivers, temporary fuel shortages for filling stations. Banana Republic springs to mind.

Amalegra

What is so outrageous is that the price of gas/electricity will increase at a higher rate for those on pay as you go meters, all too frequently renters with no other option from the landlord. As these are sometimes the less well off in our ‘caring society’ it will have a disproportionately harder effect on these people. As will the anticipated rise in food prices!

I do so agree with you, it always makes me angry that the people on pay as you go meters are charged more, they are usually the poorest and they prepay so hardly seems fair.

Can't believe you only pay £58.00 a month I already pay &£80.00+ there's only me I don't iron Use a hairdryer or tumbledryer I have one portable fire only I use a fan at night & electric blanket any thoughts??

Fire & electric blanket only in winter obviously

I was listening to the CEO, of Green Energy, he was saying it's not so much because their going into liquidation, it more to do with existing customers not paying their bills, he said some customers are months & months behind, it doesn't seem to matter how many reminders are sent out some people just don't pay, he was on the radio, he said if it's hard for customers if they would at least communicate they could sort things out.

I’m not citing Green Energy here. If they don’t get paid, then he has a valid complaint.
I’m just pointing out that trying to communicate with any company was always tricky, but it has become increasingly difficult. You can spend an hour in a phone queue-an even worse nightmare if your phone contract doesn’t have unlimited minutes, only to find that, “I’m sorry you’re through to the wrong department!”

autumnsun

Can't believe you only pay £58.00 a month I already pay &£80.00+ there's only me I don't iron Use a hairdryer or tumbledryer I have one portable fire only I use a fan at night & electric blanket any thoughts??

It could be the portable fire. All electric heaters use a lot of power.

I live in a two bed mid terrace house and my electricity direct debit is £49 a month and I'm in credit.

However, I use gas for heating, water and my hob. I don't use any electric fires but I do have a dishwasher and washing machine (rarely use the tumble drier). The kettle uses quite a lot of electricity.

growstuff I agree. We have had to use an electric heater, an oil filled radiator, in the kitchen for the last year. Our electricity bill has shot up, even though I set the thermostat low and had it on a timer.

I pay quarterly, not monthly, so I am not sure how much a monthly DD would have risen, but risen it certainlywould, probably over £10 a month.

Now our extension is built, we will have a new radiator connected to the CH system this year. As the extension has led to the whole of the back of the house, at ground level now being highly insulated,i t will insulate us against some of the price hike this winter.

I have just noticed autumnsun says she uses a fan heater at night. If that is on all the time she sleeps, even if just in winter, plus a portable fire, no wonder her payment is so high!

coastalgran

What with energy companies going bust, supermarkets short of food, no drivers, temporary fuel shortages for filling stations. Banana Republic springs to mind.

We havn’t got power cuts yet - characteristic of a banana republic.

It is worth spending on modern technology to cut down your bills. We were without a dishwasher for 6 months and our gas and water usage has fallen significantly since we had a new one. Modern boilers and radiators use far less energy than old fan heaters. We had a couple of double glazing panels replaced recently too and these are so efficient that condensation is forming on the outside now it's getting cooler and damper.
I have just checked my energy providers app and they are suggesting that we decrease our direct debit. The new appliances will pay for themselves eventually.

I have no central heating at all so I have to use an electric fire but even in summer months when I don't use it doesn't seem to make much difference to my bill

autumnsun I assume your home is rented, not owned by you. It might be useful for you to talk to someone like Age UK about what help you can get as a tenant to improve the insulation in your property.

Do you have a helpful landlord? They might be willing to do things to make your flat more energy efficient, but start with your local Age UK. They also have a factsheet that may help.
www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/factsheets/fs1_help_with_heating_costs_fcs.pdf