The gas and electricity tariff has two parts:
- daily supply charge, and
- usage charge.
The daily supply charge
The daily supply charge is also known as the:
- service charge (or service to property charge), or
- fixed charge.
This is the cost of getting electricity or gas to your place, even if you don’t use any.
You might see it on your bill:
- in cents per day, and
- as the total amount for the billing period.
The usage charge
The usage charge is also known as the:
- consumption charge, or
- variable charge.
This is the cost of the electricity or gas that you use.
You might see it on your bill in:
- cents per kilowatt hour (c/kWh) for electricity, and
- cents per megajoule (c/MJ) for gas.
Some bills might show more than one usage charge.
For example, a time of use offer might have different usage charges for different time periods, which are usually called:
- peak
- shoulder, and
- off-peak.
Your retailer can calculate the usage charges on your bill in different ways, depending on your offer.
How tariff blocks look on a bill
Some energy offers split your energy usage into different tariff blocks. With tariff blocks, you pay:
- one rate or cost for the first part of your usage, then
- a different rate or cost for the next part (or parts) of your usage.
Blocks can apply to:
- daily
- monthly, or
- quarterly usage.
For time of use electricity offers, blocks can also apply to the different rates that make up a tariff.
For example, you get charged one rate for the first part of your peak usage, then a different rate for the next part.
Have a look at our interactive electricity and gas bills to see examples of how tariff blocks might look on your bill.