If the rent for your student accommodation is not all-inclusive then you will need to organise your own utilities and understand that student energy bills will be part of living in your student home.
Indeed, the organising of utilities such as water, gas and electricity for your student property may be a daunting task and you need to know whose name will go on which bills.
That’s because the person named will be responsible for paying it and then collecting their housemates share of the bill accordingly.
This means that when organising student energy bills you need to know who is supplying the gas and electricity currently to the property; the best thing to do is ask your landlord.
Utility services provider
That’s because the utilities service provider is registered on a national database and, depending on where you live, it’s an easy enough process to find out who the supplier is by calling the regional distribution number.
Again, this is another headache for students to deal with when they are moving into student accommodation and you could also speak with the previous tenants to see who provided the utilities.
It may be easier to simply continue with the current utility provider but you must ensure that you take meter readings from the moment you move into the property to ensure you are not paying for the energy used by the previous occupants.
It’s at this point that you may decide to do some research to see if there’s a better deal for your utility provision than your current supplier offers.
Do not be confused by talk that student tenants cannot switch suppliers because they are renting their home – this is not true.
If you are paying the energy bills at a property you have the legal right to switch suppliers.
Process for students to switch energy suppliers
It’s also an easy process for students to switch energy suppliers and they could save several hundred pounds every year by doing so. For students on a tight budget that’s a saving to really think about!
However, this also raises the prospect of having to decide on the correct energy tariff for your needs so it’s good to do some research on this.
Again, the variety of tariffs available for students can be overwhelming but by a process of elimination you should find a student deal to suit you, particularly if you opt for a ‘dual fuel’ offering where the same supplier delivers your gas and electricity.
It’s also possible to use an online comparison website to find the cheapest possible tariff and this can be done in just a few minutes.
Alternatively, it it’s a good idea to consider using a students’ bill splitting service such as Glide who combine all monthly bills into one single split bill for every tenant, and if you under use your energy you will receive a refund at the end of your tenancy.
Managing your student energy bills
If you aren’t using Glide and after you have carried out the utilities research to find the energy tariff that will meet your needs, it’s important to ensure that the bills are paid promptly.
There are different ways of managing the bills and the most popular way is to share responsibility equally; this means everyone will take responsibility for a different bill whether that’s the water, electric or gas bill.
They then work out who owes what when the bills have been paid.
It’s important to appreciate too that missing payments may lead to financial penalties and you also run the risk of damaging your credit score for late or non-payment.
Alternatively, students sharing a house can create a kitty to cover all of their bills or even set up a joint bank account which may make things easier since the bills can be paid by direct debit.
It’s also important that whoever is responsible for the gas and electricity bills submits regular meter readings to their provider to ensure the bills are accurate and you are not being overcharged for energy use.
Also, let’s face the fact that the cost of utilities may come as a surprise to many students living away from home for the first time and budgeting for them may become an issue.
However, there are steps they can take to save energy to help reduce their bills which also means they will reduce their carbon footprint and be doing their bit for the environment.
This means they should turn down the thermostat, for instance, and open their curtains for daylight to warm their room. There are lots of little energy saving tips like this to help students. (refer to our Facebook page for more tips).
Researching student broadband deals
For those moving into a student property, there’s also a need to organise an internet connection which means researching student broadband deals to find the best offer that meets your needs.
Again, as with utility providers, those offering student broadband deals have a range of offers that may appear to be bewildering.
Though with some careful thought beforehand, you should be able to source a broadband deal that will meet your needs but you will need to know more about the download speed, data allowances and whether you want a TV package to be bundled.
The broadband will also need an active telephone line into the property which means they may offer free or cheap telephone calls as well.
Another issue for students looking for broadband deals to appreciate is that many student broadband offers will demand a contract of 12 months though this is less attractive for those who are living in a property for just nine months. This means they will be paying for a service they do not enjoy while they live away.
As with the utility provision, Glide can also offer excellent student broadband deals and organise the connection of the service and incorporate the cost of it into a monthly bill for each of the student tenants.
If you need to know more about student energy bills as well as great student broadband deals, then it’s time to speak to Glide.