I never thought I'd say this, but the electric company

[fireheart]

Australian coinage doesn't have 'quarters' aka quarter dollars.

5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1, $2.

No 1c or 2c pieces anymore: payments that don't end in a multiple of 5c are rounded up/down as appropriate.


Long story short: it's impossible in Australia to pay one's power bill in quarters.

Here's a fun fact: most 1c/2c coins were actually melted down in 2000 and were turned into the bronze medals for the Sydney Olympics.

[Seshat]

Australian coinage doesn't have 'quarters' aka quarter dollars.

5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, $1, $2.

No 1c or 2c pieces anymore: payments that don't end in a multiple of 5c are rounded up/down as appropriate.


Long story short: it's impossible in Australia to pay one's power bill in quarters.

[aulocksmith]

Australian posties must be calling the occupational health and safety folks about being required to carry excessively heavy packages.

AusPost already has that covered! Nothing over 22kg domestic, or 20kg international.

[purple]

NZ prices are ouchy. My power averages about 150 a month I would love to have solar panels but living in the south it isn't worth it.

Still 2 weeks of free power (at my prices) for half a day without, yeah I could cope with that.

[LesserSouthernFroglet]

Our electricity costs here are ludicrous. Particularly when you consider Tasmania has a huge hydro power network, and sells excess power to the mainland. But the state company is very profit-driven.

The solar system has actually halved my bill...

Dalesys, thanks for the mental picture, I'm gonna be snickering all day from that one!

[Food Lady]

Mine would run $210 (U.S.) for three months in winter. In the summer it would be $120 to $150, depending on humidity, since I'll run the AC 24 hours a day in super-humid weather. But here you can get a grant for your electric bill in winter, since many of us have electric heat. It's for low-income people.

[dalesys]

We have big buff posties on little motorbikes.

Oh... Like a nude Shriner's parade, then...

[fireheart]

Power bill is typically $350, and it gets paid in quarters? Australian posties must be calling the occupational health and safety folks about being required to carry excessively heavy packages.

*groan*

My last electricity bill was $360 for 3 months, but that included a $60 connection fee. That was actually surprising as we have a computer server rack in the house that is running a few things, we also have a dehumidifier and our hot water and stovetops are both electric.

[LesserSouthernFroglet]

We have big buff posties on little motorbikes.

The bill was for 3 months (quarter year).

[wolfie]

Power bill is typically $350, and it gets paid in quarters? Australian posties must be calling the occupational health and safety folks about being required to carry excessively heavy packages.

[Shannarah]

In Australia, we usually pay bills by the quarter, = 3 months

[Tama]

Please tell me $350 was for more than one month.

[LesserSouthernFroglet]

... actually did something right.

I live in a very rural area of Tasmania, we get a lot of very windy days here, and the power company (who we all grizzle about because, hey, the power company and megaprofits and high power bills) cops a caning on these days, with downed power lines all over the place.

Usually they get the power back up and running fairly swiftly, and if your power is out, then calling their service number anytime 24/7 will get you a recorded message with an update by area on when to expect the power back on.

I lost power for a half day at the beginning of October. Not a huge hardship, it was a Sunday and I can manage without electricity for a few hours. The recorded message said power would be restored around 12MD and it wasn't long after that when it came back on.

Anyway... yesterday I got a check in the mail for $80. The power company had 'failed to live up to their service standards policy' and thus were refunding me $80 for the inconvenience of the blackout.

Considering my last power bill for the quarter was $350 (with a 16 panel solar feed-in system), it's a fair whack of compensation for a half a day.