EDF Energy is making a big change to bills – and customers won’t be happy.
The energy giant is scrapping quarterly bills for households favour of monthly billing.
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Some households prefer to pay this way because it gives them time to check over their bill before they pay it.
And some furious customers took to Twitter to slam EDF over the decision.
One livid user said: ” Are suppliers like EDF allowed to automatically change you method of payment from quarterly to monthly without communicating it to you and without offering a cheaper monthly direct debit option. Or is this practice illegal?”
While another fumed: “Just found out that my electric bill is moving from quarterly to monthly by EDF.
“Is there any mention in the relevant email as to why? Nah, that would be too simple!
” I called and found out that there is no more quarterly billing, this simple fact was missing from their email.”
EDF confirmed the change, with a spokesman adding: “Customers are being notified of this change and reassured that their prices aren’t changing due to this.
“Monthly billing allows customers to budget easier, and reduces the chance of any bill shocks.”
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If you pay quarterly, the yearly estimate will be divided by four.
It’s important to be aware that you might be paying for more than you’re using at some points during the year and particularly over the summer.
This is because it’s unlikely that you’ll be paying to heat your home during the warmer summer months.
But this tends to balance out over the year and smooths out over the more expensive winter months.
What is the cheapest way to pay my energy bill?
Switching to paying your energy bills by direct debit is one of the simplest ways to bring down your charges.
Customers of several firms have a choice over how their direct debits are set up:
- Fixed direct debits
- Variable direct debits
With a fixed direct debit, you’ll pay a fixed amount every month. Your energy company will work out the cost of your energy for the year ahead and divide this into equal payments.
Most energy firms will use the average amount of gas and electricity used in previous years to calculate your monthly instalments.
With a fixed direct debit you can spread the cost of your energy use without any surprises.
With a variable direct debit, you can choose to pay a varying amount every month or every quarter, depending on the energy you use.
You’ll pay for the energy you use, this means you’ll likely pay more in the winter and less in the summer.
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