Here we take a look at some of the simplest ways you can make the money you spend on petrol (quite literally) go further.
There are a range of things that you can do to your car to get more mileage out of a tank, and none of them involve feats of mechanical ingenuity. Simple, simple things can really add up. For instance, if your tyre pressure is too low, you’ll create extra drag, meaning the engine has to work harder to get you where you’re going and more fuel is used up. Your unnecessary roof rack is also a big source of drag, so, if you don’t need it, take it off.
As well as aerodynamics, weight is a big issue as far as fuel consumption is concerned. Get rid of all the rubbish that’s accumulated in your boot, the backseat and the foot wells and you could find yourself manning a much leaner vehicle. Likewise, opting not the fill the tank all the way up when you’re at the petrol station will also leave your car running lighter.
Finally, look out for the air con. Whilst its effect on the temperature in your car may be cool, the toll it takes on the tank is anything but. If you’re travelling at low speeds, don’t bother with the AC. Just wind down the windows.
If you’re travelling at a fair old whack, then the opposite applies, as taking the windows down will (as well as turning the inside of your car into the eye of a tiny storm) also generate so much drag that you’ll be better off with the air con on.
Combine these steps with commonsense measures like turning off the engine when stuck in a jam and you can expect to drive your fuel efficiency up by more than 15% – a very noticeable difference.
You’ll save even further if your driving style is economical. If you’re thinking ahead then, as well as being safe and considerate, you’ll also use less fuel. Being in a position where you can allow your car to slow naturally from losing momentum is much more efficient than slamming on the break every time you need to stop. By the same token, smooth, gradual acceleration will always be preferable to flooring it. Staying in the highest gear you can at any given time (without asking too much of the engine) is also going to save you fuel.
If you do all this well you can expect to stretch out your mileage by another 15%. On top of this, you will most likely find that you aren’t losing any time. Others may pull away quicker from the lights, but they’ll end up breaking harder when they reach the next set, making the whole exercise of rushing along somewhat futile.
]]>This could have been a simple mistake with a meter reading or, more seriously, you might have been convinced to switch having been told that your bills would be lower as a result, only to find they’ve actually gone up instead.
If you’ve been charged unfairly, you need to take action sooner rather than later. But how do you spot a problem? Here are some of the things you need to look out for with regards to mis-selling.
Whilst switching your energy bills can save you money, you should make your move of your own initiative, and never at the behest of a sales person. In their quest to chalk up sales they’ve been known in to use practices such as ‘slamming’.
This one of the most blatantly underhanded ruses out there. A salesperson will come to your door and, if they manage engage you in conversation, they’ll find an excuse to ask you to sign something, saying that it is just to prove that they were there, or that they need it in order to be able to supply you with a quote later.
They’ll then use this signature to switch you over to a new (and quite possibly more expensive) energy tariff without your permission. No one can switch your energy supplier without making it clear to you that that’s the decision you’re making at the time. Any contract you sign must have the word ‘contract’ on it in plain sight. If this wasn’t the case, the contract should be cancelled and you might also get compensation as well. If you’re signature was forged, you’ll get an additional £250 on top of any other repayments.
A sales representative will usually ask what you’re currently paying for your energy. They may then tell you that you could pay less by switching and demonstrating this by giving a figure for the monthly amount you’d pay by direct debit if you moved. This may indeed be a lower amount, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the energy is any cheaper, it simply means you’ll pay less of what you owe each month. As time goes by you’ll be building up a bigger and bigger debt that you’ll eventually have to pay back.
Ofgem are pretty clear on this sales tactic and it is generally accepted that using a low direct debit amount to make energy seem more affordable is misleading. If they intimate that your bills will be lower if you switch they need to offer a proper price comparison. This can be done either by telling you what you’ll pay or offering a close estimation based on the best available data.
Is a sales representative uses falsities to get you to sign a contract it can be considered void and money paid could be reclaimed. This includes claiming they their product is endorsed by any individual or organisation that hasn’t actually given them any form backing. Crazy as it sounds some rogue sales people even claim that they’re acting under the instructions of Ofgem, the very organisation that exists to hold them accountable for their shady dealings, when trying to get you to move energy companies.
If a sales representative failed to disclose important information about your switch you could be in line to get money back. If you are sold a capped tariff there is a ceiling on how much you have to pay that you can’t be charged over. With a fixed tariff you always pay the same per a unit, regardless of how energy prices might change, whilst a tracker tariff changes in accordance with rates set by the energy company.
It should be explained to you exactly how these different tariffs work. If you were mislead or lied to (for example if you thought you were getting a fixed tariff where prices wouldn’t go up, when in fact you were getting a tracker) you have grounds to be compensated.
Likewise, if they fail to tell you about the exit fees you’d have to pay in order to cancel the contract they’ve failed to do as regulations require. They also need to give you written notice of your cooling off period. This is a seven day (or longer) span in which you can back out of the agreement without any consequences.
Of course, even if you’re contract is valid, you may still be wrongly charged. Here’s a look at some of the most common causes of mis-billing.
Some tariffs offer cheaper rates at off peak times. It is possible you’ve been charged a peak rate at times it should not have applied, leading to a larger bill.
Meters can give wrong readings, and even if you complain, some companies can be slow to investigate the issue, leaving you with a large bill that you shouldn’t have to pay. Some will ignore you even if you taken correct readings , whereas others may neglect to take regular readings and instead just give vague estimates.
In cases where mistakes have been made, suppliers are not allowed to bill for more than 12 months according to the Back Billing Code.
The first step should be to write to your supplier providing any evidence you can to support your case. If this relates to mis-selling you might put down all details of the sales person’s communications with you; when and where the conversation happened, what they said, their name etc. If it’s to do with an incorrect bill, state why you believe the bill to be incorrect. You could use the phone if the complaint is minor, but be sure to keep notes on your conversations with the company.
If you are unable to come to an agreement with the company following your complaint then, after 8 weeks has elapsed, you can take your complaint to the Ombudsman. They are impartial and exist to come in and judge disputes between consumers and suppliers. They will look into the situation and make a judgement based on the available evidence. If they believe your case has enough substance to it, they may demand that the charges be dropped and can order that you be paid compensation.
It costs nothing to go to the Ombudsman and there are no repercussions if you lose (aside from being stuck with the bill or contract that you already had). In this sense it’s not like seeking legal help.
You can make contact by post, email or phone. You’ll need to give details of when you made your initial complaint and the progress (or lack thereof) that has been made since then. You should also put forward the resolution you have in mind. If this takes the form of a compensatory payment you should give a figure and your reasoning behind it.
]]>Before the advent of the internet it would have been impossible to compare energy prices from all of the available suppliers and so consumers were often forced to stay with the one they had without even knowing what other deals lay out there. Nowadays though that has all changed with comparison services such as uSwitch who provide an all of market overview of gas and electricity tariffs using just a few bits of information you provide. Your role in the switch can be over in less than half an hour but the savings on your energy bills can go on for months or years.
If you are reading this then it probably means that you have been hit by price hikes with your current energy supplier and want to know whether you should switch straight away. The short answer is that there are always deals to be had and it is quite unlikely that you are on the best gas and electricity tariff.
There are two sides to the coin here – firstly, if not all of the energy companies have hiked there prices then there are likely to be some very attractive deals to be had but the flip side is that unless that new tariff is a fixed one, you may end up paying more than you do now when the supplier you switch to ups their rates to follow suit with the others. So you may think that you are beating the price hikes but in reality you could just be putting them off with no certainty if, when they do happen, that you are on the best deal.
The tariffs to look out for are the ones that guarantee no price hikes for a certain period of time. At least with these you can have some degree of certainty about your gas and electricity bills. Furthermore, since you can switch energy supplier every 28 days if you wish, when the fixed price comes to an end you just perform another search with one of the comparison sites like uSwitch.
Step 1 – Pull together the following information:
Step 2 – Using a comparison service such as uSwitch, enter your postcode in it’s entirety and details of your current energy supplier including the plan or tariff you are on, the method of payment (e.g. monthly direct debit, on receipt of bills etc) and whether you have Economy 7 if you are an electricity customer – this information allows you to see the savings you could make when you compare deals later on in the process.
Step 3 – Enter your gas and electricity consumption – usually in annual form. You can either use your annual energy statement if you have it, add up all your bills over the course of a year (assuming they are actual measurements and not estimated readings) or make an estimate based on one quarters usage. The figure you need to be looking for is the number of kilowatt hours (kWh)of both gas and electricity you used.
Step 4 – Enter details about your home such as the type of property (flat, house, detached, terraced, etc), the number of occupants and the number of bedrooms – this should allow the comparison site to give you better estimates of new bills with other suppliers.
Step 5 – Choose how you would like to pay your bill. Paying a fixed monthly Direct Debit can mean discounts on your bill while signing up for an online only tariff can also provide cheaper gas and electricity.
Step 6 – Choose your new supplier from the list of suppliers and their quoted annual prices. Many comparison sites show you the saving on your current bill. Remember that these prices are estimated and do not take into consideration any future price hikes or drops that any of the energy companies might make. Here you might also get the option to filter by things such as fixed introductory periods or the energy makeup of a supplier (e.g. green tariffs versus non-green tariffs – some sites even show you the CO2 you could save when switching).
Step 7 – Enter your details including name, address to be supplied, contact number, Direct Debit details for the new supplier. The comparison service such as uSwitch will finalise your application to the new energy supplier who will then contact your current (or now your old) supplier informing them you are switching.
Step 8 – Tie up loose ends by:
This completes your part in the switching process.
No. The old and new energy companies will ensure a smooth transition with no blackouts or cuts to your power.
From confirming the switch to the actual switch taking place it can be 4 to 6 weeks and if you’ve switched both gas and electricity then the exact switch dates might differ somewhat.
No. Your new and old supplier will arrange a switch over date between them so you should not be billed twice.
If you decide you don’t want or need to switch your supplier after all then contact your new supplier and let them know within the 7 to 14 day cooling off period.
You are allowed to switch every 28 days if you wish but some tariffs include a penalty if you cancel before a certain time so be sure to check the outline of the agreement.
If you would like other tips on reducing your energy bill then check out the Energy Saving Trust for advice on lowering your usage, renewable home energy and more.
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