Reduce...

... Got a nasty shock a week or so ago. Finally got around to downloading my electronic utility bills from RSPB Energy. The electricity bill had decided to put up our monthly payment to £31 from £28. Only problem was, the estimated bill was 500 units out. A rectified reading has resulted in a new bill - not only are our payments still the same, but it now appears we have over £100 credit on that account.

The gas was even scarier - this claimed we'd used 10,000 kWh for a total cost of £200, and suggested our monthly payment would be going up to £94 from £28! Having submitted a revised reading - which was actually below the estimated reading from the bill three months ago (just how much energy was this house wasting anyway?) - it appears things have been sorted. Just spoke to a friendly lady at Southern Electric, everything is fixed and our monthly payment will be slightly higher at £30 a month, but considering the recent hike in prices I'm hoping that means our usage is still reasonably low...

[Listening to: All Over The World - Electric Light Orchestra - (04:01)]