FAQ's
Your developments Management Company has appointed Heatlink to read the heat meters, issue the heat meter bills and collect the monies due for the heating and hot water usage for each individual resident. The amount you pay for your heating and hot water will depend on the amount you consume, which is then calculated by the heat tariff and daily standing charge. Heat tariffs and the daily standing charge reflect the cost of producing heat. You can find out more about how the heat tariffs and daily standing charge are calculated by reading.
VAT at 5% is added to your bill.
The main energy suppliers’ tariffs are based on charging for the direct provision of gas whereas your development is providing your property with heating and hot water. Your Management Company will be paying a bulk gas bill for energy (eg: gas), from its chosen energy supplier which they then turn into heating and hot water in your communal plant room.
The heating and hot water delivered to your apartment has already been through the scheme’s gas boiler and some heat is lost between the plant room and your apartment.
You should also note that in an apartment block with a heat network system, the amount of heat that you need to heat your home is much less than in a traditional house due to the modern way the development has been built. For example, the walls, floor and roof have much thicker and effective insulation. Therefore, your heating bills should be much lower than if you lived in an older building with its own gas boiler. However, this is of course subject to individual heat usage.
Heatlink have been instructed by your Management Company to apply a specific tariff and standing charge in order for them to recover their energy costs. Heatlink is therefore not able to change your tariff in the same way as an energy supplier can suggest different tariffs. Please note that our clients do not make any profit via your tariff nor your standing charge.
Bills based on actual readings can therefore not be revised as they are based on a true recording of your kWh consumption. However, if we are unable to read your heat meter, we will have no other option but to produce an estimated bill. It will clearly state on the invoice that this is bill is estimated if that is the case. In order to have an estimated bill revised you would simply email a picture of your current read to admin@hlts.co.uk Please note Heatlink do not own, install nor operate your heat meter.
What is the unit charge (p/kWh)?
The unit charge (shown either on your bill or your pay-as-you-go unit), is quoted as pence per kilowatt hour (p/kWh). A kilowatt hour (kWh) is the unit of measurement used to calculate the cost of the heat that has been supplied to your property via the communal heating network. Your heat meter measures how many kilowatt hours of heat you have used.
How is the unit charge (p/kWh) calculated?
The unit charge includes all of the bulk fuel costs that your heat supplier uses to generate heating and hot water in the communal plant room.
What is a daily standing charge?
The daily standing charge (shown either on your bill or your pay-as-you-go unit), is quoted as pence per day (p/day). This charge is a set, daily charge that is applicable across your development in order for your heat supplier to recover their costs for operating the heating and hot water network.
How is the daily standing charge calculated?
The daily standing charge (shown either on your bill or your pay-as-you-go unit), includes the costs that your Management Company has to pay in order to get the heat to your home – whether you use it or not. These costs typically include the standing charges that the heat supplier has to pay their utility provider (e.g. a gas company) for the gas supply, plus the costs incurred by pumping the hot water around the heat network.
When looking at the charges applied to you via a tariff and standing charge, it is useful to consider that even if no one at your development used any heating or hot water, your heat supplier would still have the same fixed costs from their bulk energy supplier. Therefore, your heat supplier has to recover the costs of getting heating and hot water to each home via a set daily standing charge.
What is the admin standing charge?
The admin standing charge (if applicable) relates to our fees for the service we offer to the Management Company. Our fees can be collected one of two ways, either the management company may choose to apply it to the schemes services charges OR they will ask for them to be recovered via the heat meter bills. This fee is shown separately as a daily charge.
Why are my tariff and standing charge different from those advertised by energy suppliers?
Energy suppliers’ tariffs are charges for the direct provision of gas whereas your scheme is providing your property with heating and hot water. Your Management Company will be paying a bulk bill for energy (eg: gas), from its chosen energy supplier which they then turn into heating and hot water in your communal plant room.
The heating and hot water delivered to your apartment has already been through the Scheme’s gas boiler and some heat is lost between the plant room and your apartment.
You should also note that in an apartment block with a heat network system, the amount of heat that you need to heat your home is much less than in a traditional house due to the modern way the development has been built. For example, the walls, floor and roof have much thicker and effective insulation. Therefore, your heating bills should be much lower than if you lived in an older building with its own gas boiler. However, this is of course subject to individual heat usage.
Can I change to a different tariff?
Heatlink have been instructed by your Management Company to apply a specific tariff and standing charge in order for them to recover their energy costs. Heatlink is therefore not able to change your tariff in the same way as an energy supplier can suggest different tariffs. Please note that our clients do not make any profit via your tariff nor your standing charge.
Who is my energy supplier?
Heatlink is not an energy supplier. We are a metering and billing agent that operates on behalf of your Management Company. Heat suppliers receive their bulk energy supplies from a range of suppliers. This detail should be included in your welcome pack.
Can I change to a different supplier?
Your Management Company will negotiate the bulk energy supply for your heat network from a number of providers. Your schemes boiler plantroom provides you with heating and hot water by converting the bulk energy supply into heat. Please note that Heatlink has no involvement in the process of choosing energy suppliers.
Please contact your management company to discuss, as Heatlink have no involvement with maintenance or any boiler plant room issues.
Please notify Heatlink at admin@hlts.co.uk or call us and we will arrange for a new card to be sent to you. Please note that there will be a £7 charge to replace a lost or damaged pay-as-you-go card.
Heatlink is not an energy supplier. We are a metering, billing and payments collections company for residents who are connected to a heat network. The bulk energy supply at your development is arranged by your Management Company, private building developer or Housing Association.
If you are in a property where Heatlink has been appointed to send you bills in the post and you have not yet received one, please contact admin@hlts.co.uk to check that we hold the correct details for you and your home.
Tips for heating Turn your heating off or set your programmer If you’re out for the day, turn the heating off so that you’re not keeping an empty home warm. Likewise, during the night when you’re wrapped up in bed, you probably don’t need to have the heating on so you can either turn it down or off completely. It is far safer to set the programmer in your property to turn on and off at given times to suit your lifestyle. That way you don’t have to rely on remembering to physically turn off the heating when you are going out. Thermostat The thermostat detects the temperature in your home and turns the heating on when it becomes too cold. Therefore, it’s important to make sure that the thermostat isn’t blocked by anything such as furniture or curtains so that it can do its job properly. Turn the thermostat down Try and set your thermostat to the lowest comfortable temperature. Some studies show that turning the thermostat down by just 1°C can reduce your heating bills by 10%. However, don’t reduce it too much and make sure that you are still warm! Set and forget It is far safer to set the programmer in your property to turn on and off at given times to suit your lifestyle. That way you don’t have to rely on remembering to physically turn off the heating when you are going out. Tips for hot water Install a water efficient showerhead As you have a modern home, it is likely that your water appliances are already quite water efficient. However, make sure that if you replace the shower head, it is a water efficient model which will greatly reduce the amount of hot water that you use. Have a shower instead of a bath If you have an efficient showerhead then having a shower will typically use much less hot water than taking a bath. Always use a bowl when washing up If you don’t have a dishwasher (or don’t use it) then you can save a lot of money by using a bowl when you wash up instead of having running hot water. Dripping tap As well as wasting a lot of water, a dripping hot tap will also increase your heating bills. Make sure that the tap is turned off or change to washer if required.
Yes. You would need to call us to discuss setting up a Payment Plan to pay off what you owe, (plus your ongoing consumption), in agreed instalments over an agreed set period.
Please visit the ‘Understanding unit charges & standing charges‘ page which explains how Heatlink and your Management Company calculate the unit and daily standing charge for your development, so that your heat supplier does not make a profit.
In most cases, Heatlink will have been appointed by your Management Company to send quarterly bills. Some developments will receive monthly bills.
In instances where we cannot obtain actual meter reads to be used for billing, we will use estimated reads. We aim to ensure our estimated reads are as accurate as possible, and would generally calculate these estimates based on the previous recorded actual consumption. If you have actual meter reads that have not been used to bill, please provide them to us and we will re-issue your invoice to reflect these reads. Please note, actual reads should be supported by photographic evidence.
On occasion a bill may have been produced before the payment was received. Please note that although the payment may have left your bank account, it can take 5 working days before Heatlink receive this money. Once the payment is received, this will be allocated to your account and reflected in the next statement. Your customer reference may not have been used of written incorrectly when sending your payment. Without this information, we’re unable to be allocate the received payment towards the relevant account. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact our billing and bureau team.
You are obliged to pay energy bills within 14 days of issue. It is very important to make payment of your invoice in time and in full, as this money is passed back to the Management Company who in turn pay the bulk gas bill. If you have any concerns about your ability to make payment, please contact Heatlink immediately to discuss your circumstances. Your schemes management company take non-payment of bills very seriously and will take further action to recover outstanding amounts where necessary.
We have been appointed by your Management Company as the billing provided for your heating and hot water supply. Please check with your other utility company, as your other bills are more likely to be for the provision of cold/waste water or electricity.
Use our Payment Portal Heatlink has its own customer zone where you can log onto your payment portal to see your account status, print invoices and pay bills. In order to use this facility you will need to registered first. In order to register you will need to complete a registration form. Our registration form can be found at; www.pay.heatlinkuk.co.uk/account/new Standing Order A standing order mandate can be set up if you have an online banking facility. Our bank details are printed on the bottom of all invoices. If, however, you do not have access to online banking please email admin@hlts.co.uk and ask for a standing order to be emailed to you. This would need completing and sending to YOUR bank Bank Transfer Our banking details can be found on the bottom of your bill. Please use your unique account number as a payment reference. By Card Please contact us on 0114 231 3700 to make a payment over the phone. By Post You can write a cheque to Heatlink (Client Services) Limited. Please ensure that you write your account number on the back of the cheque and include details of what you are paying or a copy of your statement and post to our address, which can be found on the bill.