[meldrewreborn]

@retrotecchie

Are you a pretty face?????


I’ve never considered myself a looker, and never really been concerned with improvements!!

[Mailman]

Cornwall have released their last prediction for the price cap before the news now expected on Friday morning - they are now predicting a 14% fall in the price cap and the new figure now includes a £16 'bad debt allowance' although its inclusion yet to be confirmed by Ofgem. We've had costs for 'badly-funded' suppliers and it looks like costs for 'badly-funded' customers from now on. 🤔

[retrotecchie]

@Mailman

The new cap represents a 21% hike in electricity standing charges. This sort of nonsense has to stop.

If I get into trouble with my Visa card, I don't expect other Visa card holders to chip in to the issuing bank to sort out my debts. If I can't afford my garage repair bills, it would be perfectly reasonable for my garage to hang on to the car until I could scrape up the money. If my shopping came to £100 and I only had £90 when I got to the till, I'd expect to have to put a few items back and get the bill down to what I can affort to pay.

So how come it's ok for the energy companies to come after the honest, bill paying customers and ask them to pay extra to subsidise the delinquent ones, so the energy companies don't lose out? Surely they have the same access to debt recovery options as any other business?

[meldrewreborn]

@retrotecchie @Mailman

This is where we get to when the force fitting of prepayment meters gets suspended and companies are prevented from making customers who don't pay their credit account bills prepay instead. When customers are forced onto prepayment they are required to pay back (gradually) their credit account debit , but if customers have left and not left a forwarding address and thus can't be traced the bill falls back onto the supplier and now the customer.

It also means that the sooner customers are forced onto prepay (so without having built up an excessive credit account debit) the better for the vast majority that pay up on time. But if any other business doesn't get paid for goods or services doesn't get paid that becomes an operating expense , so indirectly gets passed onto other customers. Energy suppliers are not really that different.

The key thing is to recognise the consequences of decisions when pandering to the pressure from campaigners. Whether it gets added to standing charges or unit prices is definitely arguable. The bad debts will be composed of both standing charges and energy consumption, so perhaps in charging it on to the rest of us they should be allocated in similar proportions.

[Tommysgirl]

@retrotecchie

Well said. I completely agree. Many people have struggled with the Cost of Living Crisis, but still pay their bills. We shouldn't have to pay extra to make up the shortfall for those who simply won't pay theirs, but it'll be easier and cheaper for the energy companies to do that, rather than pursue the non-payers via debt-recovery.

[meldrewreborn]

Apparently there are a number of changes on the way affecting Standing Charges. Prepayment used to attract a premium charge of £21 pa but this is to be formally abolished (but even the last price cap has prepayment and DD prices much the same) prices for everybody will rise instead. Personally I always thought it unfair that customers paying in advance paid more than those paying in arrears - assuming those paying by DD swing from credit (summer) to debit (winter) in a 12 month period.

Other changes are mooted - we'll learn the news tomorrow.

[meldrewreborn]

@retrotecchie

The standing charges affect those with low energy consumption more than the large energy consumers. Our views will influenced by how much energy we use.

There are always calls for the introduction of social tariffs. Assuming these were priced lower than the price cap rates (otherwise why introduce them?) suppliers income would have to be topped up by others, like the majority of customers. Even if the subsidy for social tariffs came from the Government, we would all be contributing.

In recent years Governments have wanted to push the cost of social intervention onto suppliers in order to keep taxes down. Everything has to be paid for eventually though..

I have posted before that there are too many different ways of supporting the vulnerable and needy , which leads to a lot of people missing out because they don't claim. The warm home discount was changed from a claiming benefit to an automatic enrolment system which was designed to reach more people who hadn't claimed previously, that to me is entirely sensible. However it added to the bills of the majority.

[Mailman]

Originally Posted by Tommysgirl

Many people have struggled with the Cost of Living Crisis, but still pay their bills. We shouldn't have to pay extra to make up the shortfall for those who simply won't pay theirs, but it'll be easier and cheaper for the energy companies to do that, rather than pursue the non-payers via debt-recovery.

I cannot help but think of my in-laws (both pensioners) and the help that they get enabling them them to live what we (my wife and I) call a reasonably comfortable life.

Warm Home Discount - Yes
Private Pensions -No. state pensions only
Pension Credit - Yes (this is a biggie for other gateway benefits)
UKGov Cost of Living Payments (just finished) - Yes
Able to Cope with 'COL crisis' - decidely YES (although they moan like we do about how costs have risen over over the past couple of years.)
Able to pay their utility bills - decidely YES

I daresay that the media on Friday will seek out the fringe families that cannot cope during 2024 - don't get me started on 'Look North'. 🤐

Rant over 😌

[meldrewreborn]

@Mailman

One of the problems with growing old is resetting our comparators when it comes to costs and prices. What we regard as a fair price for something is quite often many years out of date. We accept as a right out pension increases (10% last year 8% from this April) but become Nelsonian on prices. It was ever thus and its something that I have to force myself to accept and adjust.

But have you had to shell out for the tooth fairy recently?

[meldrewreborn]

@Mailman

As you say, the media on Friday will seek out the fringe families that cannot cope during 2024. But the media just report on what they say- they never ever investigate those peoples situations to test the veracity of the claims.

"Benefit Street" on the TV a few years back was illuminating in that respect.

It started 10 years ago- doesn't time fly.

Benefits Street 10 years on - what has changed? - BBC News