High heating costs: Graz residential information office helps with billing errors!

High heating costs: Graz residential information office helps with billing errors!

The city of Graz is facing a financial dilemma: higher energy costs are putting more and more households under pressure. Mayor Elke Kahr (KPÖ) in Graz recently pointed out that the concerns of the citizens are on a record high with regard to their housing costs. In particular, the increased heating costs and the associated additional payments prepare great difficulties for many people. In addition, the Graz apartment information center (Woist) has a significant increase in inquiries. In 2023 there were around 4,300, in 2024 around 5,500 contacts, as the head, Karin Hauder, reported. The demand for energy advice has exploded because many affected people are unsettled by horrendous heating accounts.

The Woist offers support in checking heating cost statements, since incorrect amounts are often billed. These accounts are often not correct and contain items that are not permitted by law, such as energy costs or incorrect meter rents that are not part of the object. In this way, repayments between 50 and several thousand euros could be achieved for those affected. The experts Barbara Horst and Juliane Tartler from the Woist point out that the heating costs in many apartments make up between 60 and 80 percent of the total energy costs. In the case of a new building with central hot water preparation, the annual heating costs for an 80 m² apartment can be up to 6,970 euros, which is an intolerable load for many, as reports.

In order to meet the increasing requirements, the Woist has expanded its advisory service. In addition to support for billing problems, there is now also comprehensive energy advice that offers free service for electricity and heating costs and tips for energy-saving behavior. Around 500 consultations are the norm annually and the tendency is rising. In addition, the legal requirements for billing companies must be improved in order to secure the quality of the invoices, since there are always considerable errors that are determined, the financial recovery, as in a current example, where a younger couple retained 750 euros, such as Kleine Zeitung reports. Especially in the case of older or unanimized buildings, households should keep an eye on the bills in order not to have unnecessarily high costs.