Are you on a budget plan for any of your utilities

[homesteadmamma]

We use to be for our heating plan, however I didn't like paying heating bills during the summer months.

[QuilterMom]

We chose not to with our electric company because the amount they came up with was just too high (they would have owed us money back at the end of the year).

[Deborah_Kate]

We are and Nicor and Comed take us to the cleaners either way so at least with being on the budget plan I know what I am paying every month.

We are never home and keep the gas at 60 degrees during the day and it's programmed to go up to 64 at 5 when I leave work so it will be 64 when we get home. Now how in the world can that mean we used $389 in gas for one month and we were gone for an entire week of that month. The furnace isn't even on that much either because, for winter anyway, it really hasn't been that cold. UGH!!

Deb

[guest7]

I just pay the bill amount. Whatever it is. I always budget for the higher winter months and consider the summer rate as bonus money.
I used to pay equal amount but it did seem crazy to pay the winter bill in the summer.

[bevjean]

At the apartment we just moved from we were on their balanced billing plan. It was decent for a bit. We were paying $93 a month. On the last regular bill we got it said our payment was going up to $165 (they reaverage it every 6 months). Anyways...we have now moved and got our final bill for the old apartment and it was $342ish. I almost had a heart attack. It seemed like a good deal at first but it really came back to bite us in the butt. I am a bit worried about how high our new electric bill will be. One of my new neighbors said some of the bills in my new apartment complex have been running between $300 & $400 this past summer. We were just offered a plan that would lock in our rate but I don't know if it will pay off in the long run either. At the current rates will be losing money, but who knows what will happen in the coming months.

[owiebrain]

Nope, we don't have that option here.

[mom2matty]

Our gas and electric companies offer "level" pay plans but we don't participate in them!

[rebecca]

I participate in the gas plan. $108 a month.

[Michelle]

No, we had a lot of problems with them when we first moved here (new house in a new development), and we didn't want to mess with things once they were under control.

[seadream]

no

[Blessed]

We are, but I might have to look into it after reading these comments.

[canadian gardener]

yes, and I love it. it's a fixed amount, it's adjusted twice a year so that there isn't a big surplus owing us, or us owing them.

It makes budgeting much easier.

our plan also has options that if you think they are overcharging, that you can compare your average use with previous years, so that you can see if they are estimating a wildly higher amount for the annual average. You can contest it, and pay less, although that may mean paying up the difference at the end of the year if you used more.

It works like that with both the natural gas and the electric utility.

[YankeeMom]

we tried to, but our utility company makes it next to impossible to enroll. There's a three day window between the first month's bill & due and the next months is due and you can't enroll in the program. So basically, it's impossible to enroll unless you 'pre-pay' for your utility bill. And I'll be darned if I'm giving them my money to earn interest on when I could be earning it..

[Pepper]

Nope. It's not offered for our gas and our electricity is low enough not to have to worry about it!

[mizniteowl]

We do on our gas bill. I wanted to get rid of it cause we were paying way more than what we used but dh wants to keep it. They owe us $64.00 right now.