ESB & Bord Gas Bills

Cherrycola

rameire wrote: »

could you not just move to a cheaper provider, and if the other providers change their rates to a higher rate, then move to the then cheapest provider.
it doesnt take much effort.

It does if each new move is going to cost us a new account/tenant deposit.

rameire

Cherrycola wrote: »

It does if each new move is going to cost us a new account/tenant deposit.

you will get it back if your bills are all paid and up to date.

Cherrycola

Which in this climate is not always guaranteed.

Del2005

Cherrycola wrote: »

Which in this climate is not always guaranteed.

Which is why they ask for deposits. Bord Gas have said they will be upto 13% cheaper till Jun or Jul, I can't remember the correct date, and will be at least 5% cheaper after that.

dudara

Cherrycola wrote: »

Which in this climate is not always guaranteed.

That's why they ask for deposits. If you're not up to date in your payments (which I know from life as a student can be hard) then you can hardly expect them to waive the deposit requirement.

Cherrycola

Im talking about the flexibility that NOT paying by DD gives, to allow for wages to reach the bank etc, which might result in payment arriving to said service provider after the due date on the bill, thus allowing them the loophole they need to hold onto deposits, Im not talking about running off and leaving a bill unpaid! :rolleyes:

And ESB are a little bit more flexible than the others, if opinions on here are anything to go by, hence the reason to pay a little more, for peace of mind.

discostu1

Lads, firstly I moved to BGE for leccy, secondly from what I am reading on this thread, and others in this section of boards, I would be worried about both BGE and Airtricity NOT taking customer meter readings, if you get a small bill these companies are not charities they WILL bill you in due course and I personally would not like to get a small bill for the last two months when I know the usage was huge given the cold weather. I know that neither BGE or Airtricity seem happy to take customer meter readings and issue correct bills has any one else experience of this

rameire

discostu1 wrote: »

Lads, firstly I moved to BGE for leccy, secondly from what I am reading on this thread, and others in this section of boards, I would be worried about both BGE and Airtricity NOT taking customer meter readings, if you get a small bill these companies are not charities they WILL bill you in due course and I personally would not like to get a small bill for the last two months when I know the usage was huge given the cold weather. I know that neither BGE or Airtricity seem happy to take customer meter readings and issue correct bills has any one else experience of this

The ESB Networks read the electricity meters for all electricity companies.
The ESB, BG and AirLecy do not read the meters.

The same for Gas.
BG networks read the meters.

BG and Flogas dont read the meters.

if you get a small bill. read the meter yourself and send in the reading, it only takes a minute.
I know its their job, but if it saves on heartache and pain. its worth it.

discostu1

Sorry maybe I didnt make myself clear, I know ESBNetworks read 4 times a year but from what I am reading here and from talking to some mates Airtricity have a budget plan that seems to be a bit detached from reality and both myself and my cousin gave readings to BGE and they effectively didnt want to take them and give us a "real" bill anyone else faced these issues

Del2005

discostu1 wrote: »

Sorry maybe I didnt make myself clear, I know ESBNetworks read 4 times a year but from what I am reading here and from talking to some mates Airtricity have a budget plan that seems to be a bit detached from reality and both myself and my cousin gave readings to BGE and they effectively didnt want to take them and give us a "real" bill anyone else faced these issues

I've had more readings since I moved from ESB. Maybe ESB networks are reading more often so that ESB can get paid by BG and Airtricity for the electricity they are reselling. I know that ESB and ESB networks are separate companies, but I'm sure they still work that little bit extra for their old co workers.

Cabaal

Cherrycola wrote: »

Im talking about the flexibility that NOT paying by DD gives, to allow for wages to reach the bank etc, which might result in payment arriving to said service provider after the due date on the bill, thus allowing them the loophole they need to hold onto deposits, Im not talking about running off and leaving a bill unpaid! :rolleyes:

Ah but then welcome to the real world where you should budget to ensure you DO have money in your bank account when a Direct Debit is due and you can't always get services if you won't pay via direct debit or credit card

Head The Wall

Cherrycola wrote: »

We decided to stay with ESB for the time being, as there seems to be some talk about Airtricity and Bord Gais prices being temporary, until they get a good client base?! And possibly by the end of this year prices with them could rise.

They guarantee to match any price drops by the ESB

Cherrycola wrote: »

Yeah, thought that was it, and to be fair, ive had no issues with ESB up to now, they seem quite flexible if people have problems paying, and they allow me to pay a little off my bill each week via Laser before i get it, not sure if the others allow this.
And their customer service has always been good, when ive had cause to call them.

Paying 13% more than I have to is an issue for me. Look at it as a 13% interest rate if you are late paying

Cherrycola wrote: »

It does if each new move is going to cost us a new account/tenant deposit.

Didn't pay anything when we changed over

Cherrycola wrote: »

Im talking about the flexibility that NOT paying by DD gives, to allow for wages to reach the bank etc, which might result in payment arriving to said service provider after the due date on the bill, thus allowing them the loophole they need to hold onto deposits, Im not talking about running off and leaving a bill unpaid! :rolleyes:

And ESB are a little bit more flexible than the others, if opinions on here are anything to go by, hence the reason to pay a little more, for peace of mind.

Airtricity also let you pay by cheque at a reduced discount. As the radio ad states, there really is no excuse not to change

discostu1 wrote: »

Sorry maybe I didnt make myself clear, I know ESBNetworks read 4 times a year but from what I am reading here and from talking to some mates Airtricity have a budget plan that seems to be a bit detached from reality and both myself and my cousin gave readings to BGE and they effectively didnt want to take them and give us a "real" bill anyone else faced these issues

Read up the terms of how the plan works, they estimate the energy usage for a year and split the bill into 12 equal payments

from their website "We regularly review your monthly payment amounts to prevent debts or large credits building up on your account. If you are paying too much or too little we will adjust the payments."

discostu1

Read up the terms of how the plan works, they estimate the energy usage for a year and split the bill into 12 equal payments

from their website "We regularly review your monthly payment amounts to prevent debts or large credits building up on your account. If you are paying too much or too little we will adjust the payments

So are you saying that if I am an Airtricity customer I can ring up, give a reading and get an actual bill on every occasion I want one??? Not the experience of a few people I spoke to. Mind you BGE werent exactly enthusiastic about this either

prinz

Signed up for both Bord Gáis and ESB last week as a new customer just moved into property. Opted to pay both by Direct Debit, with the ESB I think it was, if you set up a DD the deposit fee is waived. With BG even after setting up a DD, being told everything was now in order, getting the letters (dated 15th - received 16th) with customer code, new account number, with the readings etc, on Friday (19th Feb) I received a letter dated the 12th Feb (dated new tenancy commenced and account opened) informing me that I still had to pay a deposit of €200, and it had to be paid within 10 days of the letter date (for some reason it took a week for this letter to reach me even though letters dated later, arrived before it). So I called up Saturday (20th) with Laser details, was told the deposit was paid and given a payment confirmation number... just checked the bank and suprise suprise the payment of the security deposit has not been taken. If you take longer than 10 days from the letter date to pay the deposit a penalty ensues. Will be getting on to them later. Not impressed so far.

Also, does anyone know if this deposit will actually be returned?

Head The Wall

discostu1 wrote: »

So are you saying that if I am an Airtricity customer I can ring up, give a reading and get an actual bill on every occasion I want one??? Not the experience of a few people I spoke to. Mind you BGE werent exactly enthusiastic about this either

The budget plan breaks the yearly usage into equal bills every month. They estimate the usage on previous bills, so if you spend €1200 in a year on power they will charge you a flat rate of €100 a month.

Meter readings are still taken and every 6 months it is reviewed to make sure that you are still on target. If it is up or down they will let you know.

discostu1

The budget plan breaks the yearly usage into equal bills every month. They estimate the usage on previous bills, so if you spend €1200 in a year on power they will charge you a flat rate of €100 a month.

Meter readings are still taken and every 6 months it is reviewed to make sure that you are still on target. If it is up or down they will let you know.

Ok 4 mates live in an apartment, account with Airticity in the name of one lad, two are going travelling or emigrating, and want to settle up. The registered customer rings up and says reading is xyz will Airtricity send out a factual bill up to that reading ???

Head The Wall

Budget plan isn't really a viable solution for that kind of situation. It's worth giving them a call though as they may be able to start a new budget plan from that date. If they don't you will have to work it out yourselves

Find out how many units have been used since the budget plan started, work out the total cost of those units. Then total up what has been paid since the budget plan started. The lads leaving could owe more money or they could be owed money.

discostu1

Budget plan isn't really a viable solution for that kind of situation. It's worth giving them a call though as they may be able to start a new budget plan from that date. If they don't you will have to work it out yourselves

So are you in agreement that they wont send out an amended bill??
I would have thought it was called customer service. They wouldnt even email it. Whatever else the ESB did they never had a problem sending out amended bills

Head The Wall

discostu1 wrote: »

So are you in agreement that they wont send out an amended bill??
I would have thought it was called customer service. They wouldnt even email it. Whatever else the ESB did they never had a problem sending out amended bills

I did not say they would send out an amended bill. You had an option to choose the budget plan or not. You have to live with that choice unless you call them and get it changed. I suggest you do a bit of reading yourself instead to clear your mind up. I know what I'm on about you don't

You can find your own links, I couldn't be ar*ed trying to be of assistance anymore. Go pick an arguement elsewhere

dudara

Head The Wall Take it easy.

discostu1 - ring Customer Service with the current meter reading and ask them what your options are. We really can't answer for ESB here.

dudara

discostu1

Lads, firstly I moved to BGE for leccy, secondly from what I am reading on this thread, and others in this section of boards, I would be worried about both BGE and Airtricity NOT taking customer meter readings, if you get a small bill these companies are not charities they WILL bill you in due course and I personally would not like to get a small bill for the last two months when I know the usage was huge given the cold weather. I know that neither BGE or Airtricity seem happy to take customer meter readings and issue correct bills has any one else experience of this

discostu1 - ring Customer Service with the current meter reading and ask them what your options are. We really can't answer for ESB here

My Supplier is BGE, I asked BGE to send me out an amended Bill they effectively refused, my cousin is with Airtricity he has had a similar experience, THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ESB I am just asking has ANYONE had a similar experience with BGE or Airtricity, nor does it have anything to do with Airtricitys budget scheme, all I want to know am I and my cousin the only one who cant get a bill when they ask their supplier for one.
The reason I am wondering is that I think that some people will effectively end up with large bills or possibly large credits and it was a simple process to get an amended bill from ESB.Let me hasten to add that this is not going to send me back to ESB but IF both of BGE and Airtricity have a problem and from my experience with BGE they dont want to sent out a bill just say so. Maybe it was just me and I would be interested in other peoples experiences

91011

prinz wrote: »

Signed up for both Bord Gáis and ESB last week as a new customer just moved into property. Opted to pay both by Direct Debit, with the ESB I think it was, if you set up a DD the deposit fee is waived. With BG even after setting up a DD, being told everything was now in order, getting the letters (dated 15th - received 16th) with customer code, new account number, with the readings etc, on Friday (19th Feb) I received a letter dated the 12th Feb (dated new tenancy commenced and account opened) informing me that I still had to pay a deposit of €200, and it had to be paid within 10 days of the letter date (for some reason it took a week for this letter to reach me even though letters dated later, arrived before it). So I called up Saturday (20th) with Laser details, was told the deposit was paid and given a payment confirmation number... just checked the bank and suprise suprise the payment of the security deposit has not been taken. If you take longer than 10 days from the letter date to pay the deposit a penalty ensues. Will be getting on to them later. Not impressed so far.

Also, does anyone know if this deposit will actually be returned?

Firstly, deposits for gas & electricity have always been around. I paid them in 1984 when I first rented. I als paid deposits in the UK.

Normally they can be returned once you have shown you are a good payer. Usually 12-24 months.

With regards to above, you gave laser details on Saturday, it was probably processed by BG on Monday and can take up to an additional 2 days to come out of your account depending on what bank you are with.

Also, WHY do you have electricity with ESB when you also have gas with BG? - Switch electricity to Bord Gais and you'll save 14% for abouit 2 minutes work! www.thebigswitch.ie

Darksaga87

Hi folkes, Im moving into a new house next monday, it has gas, and I think it is on ESB.

Can I have both of them on board Gais? And also, If I pay direct debit, Will I need to pay some stupid amount of a deposit?

ectoraige

discostu1 wrote: »

So are you saying that if I am an Airtricity customer I can ring up, give a reading and get an actual bill on every occasion I want one??? Not the experience of a few people I spoke to. Mind you BGE werent exactly enthusiastic about this either

Whenever I've given my reading to them, that's what they've charged. However, there is a three-day window in which it needs to be submitted. They'll even send you an SMS reminding you of this.

discostu1

Whenever I've given my reading to them, that's what they've charged. However, there is a three-day window in which it needs to be submitted. They'll even send you an SMS reminding you of this.

Thats interesting is this 3 days from the date of issue of the bill or the date you received, and if your outside that date will they accept it

Darksaga87

Darksaga87 wrote: »

Hi folkes, Im moving into a new house next monday, it has gas, and I think it is on ESB.

Can I have both of them on board Gais? And also, If I pay direct debit, Will I need to pay some stupid amount of a deposit?

you should be able to switch the esb to BG fairly easily

you avoid any deposit on ESB if you pay by DD

Darksaga87

Yeah I was talking to them there yesterday, To pay gas by DD, The deposit is 200e. Its a freakin joke, as most people who are signing up to them, have just moved house and had to pay mad amounts of money on just getting in the door, then they hit ya with 200e deposit.

Fnergg

Darksaga87 wrote: »

Yeah I was talking to them there yesterday, To pay gas by DD, The deposit is 200e. Its a freakin joke, as most people who are signing up to them, have just moved house and had to pay mad amounts of money on just getting in the door, then they hit ya with 200e deposit.

Why is it deemed OK for landlords/estate agents to seek deposits but not electricity and gas utilities?

The gas and electricity is supplied on credit i.e. you will have used 2 months of the product before you get a bill and it is prudent business practice for such companies to seek some form of protection be it a deposit, direct debit or a combination of both.

The unfortunate fact of life is that many customers leave without paying their bills and it is that behaviour that has forced the utilities to protect themselves.

Regards,

Fnergg

Darksaga87

Fnergg wrote: »

Why is it deemed OK for landlords/estate agents to seek deposits but not electricity and gas utilities?

The gas and electricity is supplied on credit i.e. you will have used 2 months of the product before you get a bill and it is prudent business practice for such companies to seek some form of protection be it a deposit, direct debit or a combination of both.

The unfortunate fact of life is that many customers leave without paying their bills and it is that behaviour that has forced the utilities to protect themselves.

Regards,

Fnergg

Yes, im aware of this and understand.

I was having a rant. :rolleyes:

Cherrycola

Yes its understandable that they ask for a deposit, but why can ESB accept payment by DD with no deposit, or if not paying by DD you pay 300euro, Flogas ask for a deposit of 390euro if you dont pay by DD, but a whopping 250euro even if you do!!!!
Thats the part i have issue with!