Sudden increase of electricity usage?

Bills for electricity have gone up exponentially since Oct.

Anyone else had this.

Still have the old digital meter.

Not having a smart meter. They would be even higher!

Creep test found no change.

What a strange idea.

A meter is a meter is a meter, they just record how much energy you use; and there are laws that govern their accuracy - so one make or type has to record exactly the same as another make or type.

My Smart meter has definitely saved me money.

1. I can tell when my oven is up to temperature, because the light on the meter changes from red to green
2. I now know how much electricity each of my devices uses (when I set the meter to current watt usage).   This has allowed me to reduce my usage by something like 95% during Power Move Down events, which can save me over a pound each time. (Although, the Power Move Up events are not so worthwhile).

But, I do read the meter every month, just in case something goes wrong.

Being aware of energy usage can hep reduce use. My bills have not increased significantly despite price increase. My direct debit has only just been increased this month by £10 a month. If I find I am significantly in credit by the summer I shall ask for a refund.

I assume that you are on the Standard Variable Tariff. What are you paying per unit for your electricity and what are you paying for your daily Standing Charge? Where I live (Region 10), the maximum price, as set by Ofgem, including VAT, for the three payment methods are as shown here.

These prices are due to go up in January.

As you can see, for both of these, the cheapest ways to pay are via Direct Debit or with a pre-payment meter. How are you paying for your energy?

In August, I opted to take a one year fixed tariff. Often, this means that you have to pay via Direct Debit. This is the fix that I accepted.

I have smart meters, so I am able to see every day exactly what the cost of my previous day’s energy has been. On December 6th, my electricity cost was: £3.01. This included running our dishwasher and cooking a leg of lamb in our electric oven. There is zero evidence that having a smart meter is more expensive. I like being able to see what it costs for a specific action on a specific day and how it impacts on my bill.

I expect everyone has seen an increase since October. November soon turned much colder, so heating costs will have risen for most people. Anyone on a Standard Variable Tariff (SVT) will also have seen a 2% rise following the increase in the price-cap on 1 October. 

Unless you’ve had two bills since October, you can’t really say that the increase has been exponential. Let’s say October’s bill was 5% higher than September’s. If the increase to November’s was exponential, it would have been more than 10% higher than September’s, and you could expect December’s to be 16% higher. 

Perhaps you’ve been told that your Direct Debit (DD) is increasing by a lot. That doesn’t affect the size of your bills - only the amount you pay regularly each month to make sure your account doesn’t go into debt.  OVO have recently decided that the DD should be big enough to leave you with a credit balance of one month’s estimated costs at the end of the winter semester, set to 31 March 2026. There aren’t many DD payments left until then, so this extra amount will weigh quite heavily. Many customers are annoyed at this, but in fact it’s not unreasonable to maintain a small credit balance all the time, just in case something unexpected happens.

Whether your meter is smart or not makes no difference to the size of your bill. It just makes life easier, and helps you to see just where and when your energy is being used. I wonder, too, whether you’re seeing estimated usage figures on your bills. Estimates are just that - educated guesses at what you might have used. They have a habit of being higher than the actual usage; you can avoid them simply by making sure to submit readings on the first morning of your billing period. Any extra you’re charged because the usage was estimated will be discounted next time you submit readings, so it all comes out in the wash eventually and you pay only for what you’ve actually used.

Hey ​@parcel,

We wanted to highlight a few reasons why some of our members have suggested reasons for increase in their bills starting in October:

1. Heating Up: As the weather gets cooler, many of us will be turning on the heating to stay cozy during those chilly days!

2. Price Cap Updates: There are some changes to the price cap from October through December, which lead to a 2% increase compared to the previous quarter. If you’re curious, you can check out the details here.

3. Smart Meters: If you don’t have a smart meter installed, you might miss out on some special offers that could help lower your bills. Be sure to look into OVO Beyond or Power Move for more information on rewards!

4. Variable Tariffs: If you’re on a variable tariff, your unit rate will adjust with any price cap changes. If you want to avoid these increases, consider switching to a fixed price tariff to lock in your rates.

If you have any questions or need more info, don’t hesitate to reach out! We’re here to help and the community is happy to share tips and advice!

That’s a massive jump, especially if your habits haven't changed! Have you checked the usage graphs on your OVO app for specific 'spiky' times? If it’s happening in the middle of the night, it’s usually an immersion heater or a timer that’s gone rogue. Also, double-check if those high days are marked as 'Estimated' or 'Smart' - sometimes OVO's estimates are way higher than reality until a real reading clears it up.