NIE Energy - eNews Flash, issue 3

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NIE Energy - enews Flash, issue 3, Feb 2009

Hi there

Welcome to the latest edition of our enews ‘Flash’. With energy and the price of energy in the news more and more, we decided to concentrate on practical energy saving help in this edition, as well as let you know what NIE Energy can do to help you.

We’ve also included something for our younger enews readers (or young at heart!). Read on to find out what our enews kids have to do to be in with a chance of winning a WALL.E DVD. Not forgetting the rest of us, there is also £200 up for grabs for Keypad customers.

If you’ve been with us from the start of this enews, you’ll know we’re keen as mustard to get your thoughts and views on whether or not we’re hitting the mark with our enews. Why not let us know what you think and you could win a laptop!

Happy reading.

We’d like to be able to address you by your first name in future enews. If this is ok with you, please click here and email us your full name. Thanks.

There has been some TV and radio coverage recently about electricity pre-payment meters which has led to some confusion about NIE Energy’s Keypad pre-payment meter. The media coverage has been national, but the situation regarding pre-payment meters is very different in Northern Ireland than in GB.

NIE Energy’s Keypad offers cheaper electricity.
Here are the facts:

.	.
•	NIE Energy Keypad customers pay less than standard credit customers.
•	Unlike some GB based suppliers, NIE Energy does not charge extra for pre-payment.
•	NIE Energy Keypad customers get 2.5% discount off the standard price of electricity.
	Keypad is a great way for people to budget for electricity as they go along, rather than receive quarterly bills.
•	More than 1 in 4 homes in Northern Ireland, over 212,000, use a Keypad ‘pay-as-you-go’ meter.
•	It is easy to buy electricity ‘top ups’ for a Keypad meter through local Paypoint or Payzone shops across Northern Ireland, anytime online at www.nieenergy.co.uk or over the telephone (NIE Energy 08457 455 455).
•	Keypad meters are installed free of charge.
•	Keypad provides customers with information on their energy use.

To change to Keypad click here or call NIE Energy on 08457 455 455 (Phone lines open Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and on Saturday 9am to 1pm).

Buy a ‘top up’ of £20 or more with your debit card online, or through the automated phone system and you will be entered into a prize draw to win £200.

Most of the ways we can save energy in the home are common knowledge and easy to apply - but it never hurts to have a reminder, especially if it takes a little off your bill!

•	It’s tempting to hang your wet clothes over the radiators, but this will cool them and prevent heat from circulating through the house. Try hanging your washing in a closed room, with the radiators turned off and the window slightly open.
•	Fridges and freezers are two of the major consumers of energy in the home. There are several ways you can make your appliances a little cooler, cheaper and more energy efficient. Firstly try placing them in a cool part of the kitchen – away from anything hot like the oven and out of direct sunlight. Leaving a small gap between the wall and any other appliances will allow air to circulate and keep the fridge cool.
•	If you regularly defrost your fridge/freezer they will be less iced up and won’t have to work as hard to maintain a low temperature. Try not to put warm or hot foods directly into the fridge – allow them to cool rather than force the appliance to work harder and use more energy.

•	Try doing your washing at lower temperatures – most of the energy used by your washing machine goes into heating the water. A warm wash uses far less energy than a hot one and if you also start using your half load or economy wash settings for smaller loads, you could see electricity bills falling soon.
•	It may seem that using your spin function on the washing machine takes up more energy, but the clothes will be dryer and take less time in the tumble dryer which uses more energy.
•	Don’t leave appliances on standby – that light on your gadgets means a lot of energy is still being used. Although it’s tempting to have everything come to life at the touch of your remote control, try taking that extra moment to switch off your appliances completely.

Spend a few minutes completing some questions on the Energy Saving Trust advice centre
website and you’ll get a free, personalised report showing you how much energy and money you can save in your home. Click here or call the Energy Saving Trust advice centre on freephone 0800 512 012

Our confidential Customer Care register makes us aware of the individual needs of our vulnerable customers. If you register with us, you can benefit from any of these services:

•	Doorstep Service – if you have a hearing difficulty, the meter reader will knock the door louder and speak clearly when we call to read your meter. If you have a mobility problem, the meter reader will allow more time for you to answer the door.
•	Password Scheme - you can give us a password for the meter reader to use each time they call at your home.
•	Carers Contact Service – if someone helps you manage your bills, we can post the bills directly to them.
•	Braille/Audio Bill – if you are blind, we can send a copy of your bill and other correspondence in Braille or audio disc.
•	Talking Bill – if you are blind or partially sighted, we can phone you with details of your bill.
•	Large Print Bill – if you have a sight difficulty, we can send bills and correspondence in large print.

image of the Scott family Following requests from readers for case studies on saving energy, we found a family happy to share their energy saving ideas.

The Scott family from Dungannon have made a conscious effort to reduce their electricity use and kindly agreed to let us delve into their energy saving secrets.

Michelle and Jason Scott have 3 children, Caleb (11), Micah (9) and Matthew (8). Michelle says that when she was a child, all her family had a bedtime routine of going round the house and switching everything off.

“We’re back to what we used to do as kids,“ said Michelle. “The whole family go round switching off all unnecessary sockets before going to bed each night.”

Michelle also says that getting the kids involved has borne fruit. “We are also encouraging them to switch off all unused electrical devices during the day, instead of walking out of the room and leaving the Playstation or television on.”

Michelle suggested another idea to get kids involved, which has spurred us into running a competition for all the energy saving kids out there!

Michelle ran a competition for her kids to encourage them to turn electrical things off around their home. She gives them a sticker each time they turn off an electrical appliance. The kids collect the stickers on a piece of paper and whoever has the most stickers at the end of the week wins.

So, to encourage our enews kids to get energy saving, we’d like to run a competition. We have 5 WALL.E DVDs to give away to kids who take up the challenge and start collecting stickers.

Just post us a sheet of paper with the stickers you manage to collect for saving energy (any stickers will do) and we’ll put your name into the bag to win one of the DVDs. Entries to be received by 27th Feb. Happy energy saving hunting.

Post sticker sheets to: Energy Saving Kids competition, NIE Energy, Woodchester House,
50 Newforge Lane, Belfast BT9 5NW

A lucky lady from Banbridge won the luxury weekend for two at a Hastings Hotel, following the promotion in our last enews.

To make sure the enews was on track, readers were asked to send in comments and content suggestions to NIE Energy and Janet Cochrane from Banbridge was the lucky winner.
Janet said: “I like NIE Energy’s enews as it has practical information in snappy, bite size pieces. I’m looking forward to spoiling myself with a fabulous weekend at one of the Hastings Hotels!”

Enews winner Janet, is pictured (centre) with NIE Energy’s Claire Carson and Europa Deputy General Manager, Raymond Duncan.

We’re always on the look out for your feedback and new ideas for what to cover in our enews. Several ideas sent to us have been included in this enews.

Send us your feedback and you will be entered into a prize draw to win a HP 550 Celeron Vista Home Laptop with Microsoft Office and Norton Anti Virus, courtesy of
Open + Direct insurance.

Click here to send us your feedback. We’d love to hear from you!

Open + Direct Insurance is one of the largest brokers in Northern Ireland and operates out of 7 high street branches. Open + Direct work with the top UK insurers to bring you lower premiums and combined with local expert advisors, this means you’ll receive an efficient and friendly customer service that is second to none!

Why not phone Open + Direct today on the following numbers and find out how much they could save you on your car or home insurance:

CAR 08447 360 330 HOME 08447 360 331

Or, if your renewal is not yet due or has already passed, log onto their website and register your renewal dates and we will contact you nearer the time.

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