A 100-year-old woman was left “flabbergasted” after receiving an electricity bill for €957.49, her nephew has said.
Kitty Byrne is nearly 101, lives by herself in County Meath and receives her electricity bill every two months.
She has a big open fire and uses relatively little electricity compared to most people in 2023.
“She doesn’t have any central heating,” her nephew Frank told Lunchtime Live.
“She doesn’t have an electric cooker, she just has a fridge, a washing machine, an immersion - which is not used very often, an electric shower - [which is used] once a week, an electric heater on a timer, TV and lighting.
“So, the demand on it is not massive, that’s why she’s probably so flabbergasted by the size of the bill.”
The gross bill was over €1,200 but was reduced thanks to the Government’s energy credit and another deduction Kitty receives because she always pays her bills on time.
Previously, her highest bill was €420 and the family is confused why it has gone up by so much.
Euro banknotes.Frank understands that the war in Ukraine has sent the price of raw materials soaring but thinks energy companies are making too much profit.
“If all these things have happened and the energy companies are making these millions and millions more than they should be, why have the bills gone up so much?” he said.
“We’re a little flabbergasted listening to politicians talk about the poor energy companies - how are they making the billions and billions of profit?.. Why are they demanding this kind of money off people?”
He has contacted the energy company about his aunt’s bill but is not satisfied with their response.
“I sent an email and I got an answer back saying very simply, ‘Thanks for your email, we’re terrible, terrible busy and we’ll get back to you when we can.’”
Main image: Kitty Byrne. Picture by: The Byrne family.
