The future looks bleak

[megilleland]

Struggling NHS, rising energy costs, rising food costs, banks being closed ready for digitisation. Unfortunately all this is deliberately planned and unless you are totally committed to your smartphone you will be left behind and no one will care. All this happening under a Tory government which is no surprise as they will always go where the money is. However what are the alternatives - all political parties appear to offer little hope of returning to a Great Britain, everything is in chaos and the message appears to be Everyone for Themselves.

An example is my energy bills. I pay by direct debit each month and have increased my payment from £100 a month to £150 and then to £200. OVO now want me to increase my direct debit to £324 a month to prevent me being £3,092 in debt by the end of my fixed rate 2 year plan. At the moment I am in credit and read my meter each month, send the readings to OVO and usually get a bill within a couple of days, a straight forward process. If you want to increase your Direct Debit on their website it will only increase it as their suggestion. I tried to increase it to £200 as I didn't want to pay £324 at the moment and had to phone them to stop their suggested increase. 

Also since November last year I am getting bills staggered over two months with different invoice dates and the bills consists of 7 pages compared with 3 pages before.

I have been with OVO for many years and found everything to function well, however in line with the chaos created by this government and supported by corporations and financial institutions we need a radical change to stop this "We are Alright Jack" mentality.

How is everyone else coping?

[Cambo]

Tell them you want to pay for it on a weekly basis & if your in credit with them get it refunded & keep it by in a separate account & pay an amount each month into that account to meet your costs.

personally I think we are being scammed by the energy companies & the government the energy companies are making record profits & with those profits the government are raking in big tax returns also the increased energy fuel costs is the biggest causes of inflation to my mind too…I also thinks it’s a way of reducing carbon emissions forcing people to use less by increasing the costs of buying it so it becomes unaffordable to most of the population….you have to ask what is the point of ofgem they are allowing this to happen.

also the taxpayers will be subsidizing these energy companies come October when the government hands out money to people to help pay the cost of the rising energy costs… it’s a win win for the energy companies 

 

[megilleland]

Just had OVO send me an email stating that they are taking £328 a month to pay for my electricity and gas.

"We got in touch recently to ask you to increase your Direct Debit, so that your monthly payments match your energy use and costs – and you won’t have to pay a lump sum at the end of your contract.

Because you haven’t increased your Direct Debit, we’re now doing it automatically for you.

Starting with your next payment date, your Direct Debit will be £328 a month.

In 3 months’ time, we might run another Direct Debit check-in on your account to make sure your new monthly payments are keeping up with your energy use and costs.

In the meantime, sending meter readings is important
If you have a traditional meter, remember to send readings every month (if you’ve got a smart meter, we’ll get them automatically).

They help us bring you accurate bills, make sure your payments are manageable – and keep your energy account nice and healthy.

If you feel this new amount is too much, get in touch – we’re here to help
We don't want energy to be another thing to worry about right now. Please call us on 0800 408 6615 (Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 9am-2pm) and together we’ll find a payment plan that feels manageable. There are lots of ways we can support you."

At the beginning of the year I increased my Direct Debit from £110 to £150 and again to £200. I was always in credit through 2020 to 2021.

What annoys me is that OVO tell me how much and when to pay on the basis that suits them. I have tried to get through to OVO but the phone lines are continually engaged. So I replied to their demanding email, but got this reply:

The response was:
The group no-reply@ovoenergy.com does not allow posting through email.

This country needs to get people elected who can sort out the never ending mess we are in. Cambo above has hit the nail on the head. My monthly electricity charge 8th July to 7th August was £102.69 and the gas was £12.35. If there was a case for building the Severn Estuary Barrage to generate electricity this must be it. After all the tide comes in and goes out every day, although the environmentalists wouldn't be happy.

[twowheelsgood]

I think energy companies have discovered that the direct debit mandate effectively provides them with free money. The Direct Debit Guarantee to the consumer seems to be worthless, despite claiming to be 'monitored and protected by your own bank or building society' (which, given banking's reputation, isn't saying much). I've had issues in the past with the major suppliers, and had a smaller one go bust on me, but have been with Octopus for a couple of years and found them reasonably fair and open. I think if you have a SMETS2 smart meter (as I have), that makes a big difference to how they manage their direct debit, as it makes their projections forecast more accurate. The downside of course is that come the energy shortages, they can shut off your supplies remotely! So far, it's gone up once from £106 to £183, they've told me it should be £221 but I've ignored that.

Unfortunately, this government have no interest in sorting the mess out - it suits their friends in business very well and I don't see Truss changing the status quo.