News that British Gas is looking to introduce a new system which will accurately record month by month energy usage, rather than estimated usage, has caught many consumers by surprise. However, when you consider that some of your historic estimated bills have been too high and some have been too low, the net effect to consumers is likely to be minimal. However, there may be some impact upon the cash flow of the likes of British Gas.

Those who pay by direct debit have for many years been subsidising the likes of British Gas, paying the same amount per month and often building up a substantial credit during low energy consumption times of the year. If these customers were to move to the month by month basis, which would see payments taken to cover energy used, rather than estimates, it may well impact upon the cash flow and interest which the likes of British Gas have earned on their significant credit cash piles.

To all intents and purposes many people believe this is nothing but a publicity stunt to catch the headlines while the real issue, i.e. energy prices, is yet to be tackled. Despite the fact that the UK government and UK regulators have "put the squeeze" on UK energy companies there has been little joy for UK consumers over the last few years.

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