Another day, another hot topic on ex-pat Thai Twitter. Today, it’s all about electric bills and how, for most of us, they have gone up. Judging by most posts and replies, many people have bills between 50-100% higher than normal. There are also a couple of people who are being charged three or four times more than normal. However much the added expense, it’s certainly getting some people angry. I’d say that people are getting hot under the collar, but in reality, they must be nice and cool with the AC they’re seemingly running 24/7.
The government is looking into ways to cap electric bills on top of the 3% discount we’ll get this month. There are obviously a lot of people who are struggling financially right now but, on ex-pat Thai Twitter, there have been many saying how much they’ve saved this month. I’m in the same boat too and a 3-5k electric bill is certainly no issue as I understand why it is what it is this month. With pretty much zero transport costs this month, most ex-pats here must be averaging out of these two monthly expenses. When you add on no going to restaurants, bars, golf courses, cinemas, dating, etc then I can’t see the big issue of paying more for utilities.
Logic
The way I see it is that if you are home a lot more then you’ll use more electricity and your bill is going to be higher. Personally, I spend around 40 hours a week at work and I then spend another few hours a day out at restaurants, the gym or socializing. However, I’m at home 99% of the time now, of course I’ll be using more electricity. I can also make the logical jump that more usage = a higher bill.
I’m Getting Fleeced!
However, there seem to be a few people out there saying that they aren’t using (much) more electricity than normal. Perhaps they feel there is some sort of scam whereby they are being fleeced by the electric company. I’d guess that they are probably not self-aware of the extra power they are consuming. It’s easy to forget to turn off a fan or AC, likewise, you’re probably charging your phone more, have more electronics plugged in etc.
For those living with families with multiple people spending more time at home then your power bill will increase of course. You don’t always know what everyone is doing in your home. I have constant battles in my condo about how much AC we use at night and during the day. Imagine having a family of four or five with an AC in each bedroom plus a living room.
For those of you who pay electric bills directly to an apartment then you were already paying much more than those of us who pay standard rates. I do sympathize in that situation. However, I would recommend not staying somewhere where you don’t pay standard rates as you will get stung pretty much every month.
Solutions
Personally, I’m going to just accept my bill. If it ends up going up by 10x or something crazy then I know there’s an issue. However 2 or 3 times higher than normal sounds about right to me with my new schedule working from home and being here 99% of the time.
For those who were spending a lot on electricity before it might be a chance to see if you can cut back. Some people have even suggested that companies should support staff working from home and pick up their electric bill, good luck with that I say! At the end of the day, if you’re worried, turn the AC off or be prepared you’ll be paying more than normal.
