Besides paying for your accommodation you
also get regular bills for services such as water, gas, electricity,
telephone and Council Tax. Paying for the bills might use most
of your income.
Activity: Different
ways of paying your bills.
To find out about different ways you can pay your bills, select
an envelope.
Making a weekly budget for paying your
bills
To keep a budget it is important that you know how much you have
to spend on your regular bills. It can be hard to work out how
much we spend on bills each week because:
At different times
of the year we may use more gas, water
or electricity. especially in the winter
months for extra light and heat.
We might pay bills weekly, fortnightly,
monthly, quarterly or every six months.
Quarterly bills: Quarterly
means that every quarter of the year there is a bill. A quarter
means one out of 4 – so if you divide 12 months (of a year)
by 4 = 3 months. So a quarterly bill covers a period of 3 months
and comes 4 times a year.
Many bills are sent every 3 months (every quarter).
This can mean that there is a lot to pay at
once.
You will usually be sent a reminder if you don't
pay the bill when it comes.
It is a good idea if you are budgeting to put
money to one side so that you can pay the bill when it comes.
Keep your old bills so that you have an idea
of how much to save.
So how can you
budget to put enough money aside every week?
First you have to multiply by 4 – this is
to find out about how much you have to spend per year. Then you will
divide that amount by 52 – because one year has 52 weeks.
Example:
My last gas bill was £147 for a quarter.
£147 x 4 = £588 (This is the amount for a year)
£588 divided by 52 = £11.31 (to the nearest penny)
I should save £11.31 a week for gas.
Work this out for yourself.
My last electric bill was £65 for a quarter. How much should I
save weekly? You can use our pop-up
calculator for that.
Does your answer sound reasonable?
Monthly bills: You can convert
monthly bills as well so you can make a weekly budget. Because
one year has twelve months, you have to multiply the amount by
12 and then divide it by 52 to get the weekly amount you should
save.
Example:
My last electricity bill was £20 for a month
£20 x 12 = £240 (this is the amount for the year)
£240 divided by 52 = £4.62 (to the nearest penny)
I should save £4.62 a week for electricity.
What if I can’t pay the bills?
If you make your
own budget it can help you to manage your money so you have
enough to pay your bills. Nevertheless, it might happen that you
can’t pay the bills.
Spreading the cost of payments can take away the
pain of large bills. If you have a bill that you can't pay then phone
your supplier and speak to one of their advisers. They will give you
a number of options.
Remember when you phone to:
Allow plenty of time – it can take a long
time to get connected.
Be patient and polite – the person who
answers the phone is just trying to do a job.
Have everything to hand – you will need
paper and a pen as well as any bills or letters that you have been
sent.
Make a note of when you called, who you spoke
to and what was agreed.
If you
owe money you may be asked to pay more than you can afford. Make
a
list of the money you have coming in and the money you are paying
out. Have this in front of you when you call
or write. Explain any difficulties that you have been having.
If you are
still being asked for too much ask for any action to be put
on hold to allow you time to go to an advice centre, such as
the Citizens Advice Bureau.
In the meantime keep paying as much as you can.
Gas and electricity bills and meter readings
Before you get your gas or electricity bill,
the company should take a meter reading.
They do not always do this and may estimate
your meter
reading – they are guessing how much
you have used. This estimate is very likely
to be more than you actually used but you
can do the meter reading yourself and get
the estimate corrected.
Take a look at the meters below: most meters show numbers, although
some will have dials.
Is the
bill right?
A bill should show the current meter reading, the last
reading, the number of units used, the cost per unit, any standing
charge or service charge and the total amount payable.
Example
The bill in this example is £19.30.
Look at your last gas or electric bill (not
a reminder – it won't have the readings on it).
Can you see how the bill is worked
out?
Do you have to pay a service charge or
standing charge?
Was the bill based on an estimated reading?
Can you work out what the bill should
be?
Changing gas or electricity companies Because there are now lots of companies that can supply electricity,
gas or telephone services it is easy to get in a muddle about who to
pay.
When you change companies it takes a
while to sort everything out.
If you are trying to budget think very carefully
before changing suppliers.
If you want to change companies ask the new
company how you should make payments. Also check to make sure you
won't be charged if you make payments at a post office.
If you pay the wrong company you should
tell your supplier what has happened. They should be able to sort
it out, but this may take a long time.
Tip: Remember to keep
an eye on your bills. Changing companies to get a short-term
benefit is not always best value in the long term.
