In these colder months, people tend to use more energy, so it is important to understand the costs behind utility bills. These bills are electricity, gas, water, and Wi-Fi. Apart from water (which is often paid biannually), bills tend to be paid monthly. You can sometimes get a discount if you pay bills by direct debit rather than waiting for a bill by post. Remember to take meter readingsLink opens in a new window when you move in and out of a property to make sure you are being charged correctly.

Depending on your tenancy agreement, you may have certain bills included in your rent, so make sure to thoroughly read tenancy agreements to prevent overpaying! If you are unsure about any terms and conditions, the SU offers contract adviceLink opens in a new window. Some bills-included contracts have a spending cap or stipulate certain hours of heating, so keep an eye on your energy usage.

It is the legal responsibility of the person named on the bill to pay it. As a household, you may want to consider being in charge of one bill each to spread the workload. Bill-splitting appsLink opens in a new window can also be useful to easily work out people’s bill contributions.

Gas and electric bills usually contain a lot of information, so can be confusing to read. For a breakdown of the different costs by energy provider, read this uSwitch guideLink opens in a new window. Unless you are on a fixed-term tariff, you can change energy providers at any time if there are better offers elsewhere. However, you cannot change water providers as the Severn Trent company supplies water to the whole Warwickshire area.

If you need any support with your money during the year you can contact Student Funding Support by email (studentfunding@warwick.ac.ukLink opens in a new window) or telephone (024 7615 0096) Monday to Thursday 8.30 – 5.00 or Friday 8.30 – 4.00. Alternatively, you can drop in and see us by going to the Wellbeing Reception in Senate House between 10 am and 3 pm Monday-Friday.