Family signs up for power plan
Helping families combat rising prices
LAURA Erbacher still cannot believe how much she pays for electricity every quarter – but now she’s doing something about it.
The Toowoomba mother-of-two has signed her family up to a new program designed to help families combat rising power prices, which took yet another hike last week thanks to the Queensland Competition Authority.
Under the Energy Savvy Families scheme by Ergon and QCOSS, the Glenvale family will be billed monthly and gets a free digital meter to help them determine what appliances use the most juice.
The news is a relief for the family, whose quarterly bill can be more than $350, despite not having any air-conditioning in the house.
With her husband the only breadwinner, Mrs Erbacher said she went without luxuries to ensure the budget was balanced.
“It is one of the bigger bills that we have to pay and it’s something you do need to live with,” she said.
“My husband is a mechanic – he’s on a pretty good wage, but the cost of living these days is ridiculous.
“We don’t even have savings – we just put in whatever we need to get by.
“We get rid of the little luxuries and make do with what we have at home, or try and do things that are cheaper.”
Figures from the State Government reveal that 580 customers had their electricity disconnected because of non-payment during the 2015-16 financial year.
The energy program, which is being rolled out in Toowoomba by the East Creek Community Centre, comes as the State Government prepares to announce a massive subsidy scheme to halve the impact of impending electricity increases in regional areas.
Despite the $770 million announcement from Treasurer Curtis Pitt, regional energy prices are still expected to increase by $50.
Mrs Erbacher said the program could help the family mitigate the other big bills in their budget, including car registration, rent, gas and groceries.
“We don’t have air-con, so we just use the fans. Even without air-con, our bills are still expensive,” she said.
“Because of the program, you’ll get billed monthly instead of quarterly, which is better for us so we can budget more effectively.
“You also get a monitor to see what appliances around the home are causing higher power usage.”
Other perks with the program include a new app to help children learn about energy efficiency, as well as support from a community
champion.
The East Creek Community Centre still wants more families to be part of ESF, so for more information call Carol on 0412 184 466 or email energysavvy@eastcreek.com.au.