She is one of 700 Falkirk Council tenants who live in areas that do not have gas and so have electric heating systems called Thermaflow.
These were installed 10 years ago, but in the last three years a series of energy price rises has left tenants facing bills that even those in full-time work struggle to pay.
The latest price increase in October means many tenants are now literally having to choose between eating properly and heating their homes.
And despite bills that are regularly £150 every week, tenants say their homes are still not warm.
That is appalling. Being council tenants, they don’t have the option to find a more affordable form of heating, but are at the mercy of the council. God I really feel for them
My daughter got a letter in the post today from South West Water, telling her that her DD is more than doubling as from February - up from £31.50 to £77 . She will be ringing them and making an almighty fuss.
I had a late all-electric friend on Orkney in the same situation. She was not well and in the end, the huge leccie bills got the better of her … Rip Helen
Mine doubled in September, Sheba, for no reason other than “prices were going up”, not that my consumption had risen at all I protested too, but to no avail.
That is a shocking report Pixie, extremely bad PR for the company.
Honestly, though, bills being doubled in just one step is really not acceptable. I find it very hard to believe their costs have gone up that much. My daughter is actually in credit with SWW!!
So much for going all electric Pixie, and it’s going to get a lot worse.
I will not vote for any party that has ‘Green policies’ it’s just chucking money down the drain and creating poverty.
They can hold you to ransom pretty much. Unless you want to go all Victorian and use candles I checked with all the go compare stuff, checked with the housing association’s financial guy, and there is seriously nothing better out there which would reduce my bills. Its awful.
As I write this I am sitting in the lounge my heating is on low but I am wearing a silky scarf around my neck and I have a fleece jacket on . I’m worried like you all . I hate being cold . I turn my heat off about 8.30 PM and switch it on around 9am .
It’s a worrying time . My house is small terraced but I feel for those in large homes especially those without private pensions like me .
I’d just like to ask why this hike is happening with heating and food and petrol . What is it that is causing this . Is it greed again ?
No idea what or who ThermaFlow is/are, Susan…just another energy company who likes to rip people off I think I think the system these tenants have, needs maintenance, as it isn’t working properly. So this is why it has become so expensive (on top of the regular price rises). Obviously there is no rush to fix the issue as everyone is paying these extortionate prices!
The Thermaflow heating system is an all electric form of home heating, but if retrofitted into buildings that are not highly insulated + triple glazing with a full heat recovery ventilation system, very high running costs will ensue. Looking at that building shown in the article, I’d hazard a guess that is an older building. Probably a prime example where a little learning is dangerous, or in this case completely tenant unfriendly.
Mostly green policies Susan. We closed several coal fired power stations (most of them within twenty miles of me) before they had installed alternative methods of producing the same amount of power. Solar panels are useless without sunlight, and Wind turbines are useless without wind. Our winters can have long periods with neither just when we need power the most, but we always have coal or shale gas. Green taxes and somebody’s idea that engines designed around milk floats and golf trolleys will ever replace the hard working diesel engine for reliability and economy. Plus, all we have achieved is to replace the damage that fossil fuels cause, and replace it with the damage that mining for rare earth metals causes. That doesn’t matter though because the rare earth metals will mainly be mined in countries far away, unlike shale gas or coal which is waiting to be obtained here in the UK. If we want the energy, we should be prepared to put up with the damage it causes. We have the solutions under our very noses Susan, but aren’t prepared to benefit.
I don’t know… “During normal energy use , the power supplied by your meter (9.2 kVA on average ) should suffice. In theory, this allows you to simultaneously supply devices with a maximum power of 9.2 kW or 9200 watts. As you never use all your electrical appliances at once, your basic installation should, in practice, more than suffice .”
She’d be better not using the Thermaflow type of boiler, and investing in a couple of 2kW timer-controlled convector heaters with a hot air boost for the main living room and bedroom. These can be bought fairly cheaply (around £40) and be floor or wall mounted. I’ve installed quite a few of this type in customer’s houses with great success.
Me too. Bumbling Boris is trying to get everyone to go all electric and we don’t have the necessary electricity resources to do that! I suppose he lives on another planet, though.
Of course, both electricity and gas are becoming more and more expensive. We have bought in a few bags of logs and they’ll be going in our log burner as the weather becomes even colder. That should save at least something on our bills.
Then, of course, the greenies will outlaw burning wood!
. She will be ringing them and making an almighty fuss.
I think the system these tenants have, needs maintenance, as it isn’t working properly. So this is why it has become so expensive (on top of the regular price rises). Obviously there is no rush to fix the issue as everyone is paying these extortionate prices! 