Do you pay for your gas and electricity bills by direct debit? If so the
chances are your latest summer bill will show a surplus. In other words, your
energy supplier owes you money. With a monthly direct debit you pay a fixed
amount each month. So you build up a surplus in the summer when your bills are
smaller and run up a debt in the winter.
But the summer surplus may well be more than you need to pay for next
winter’s heating. You can see if you are paying too much by looking at your last
four quarterly bills. Over the whole year you should have paid roughly the same
as the cost of the energy you used. If you have paid much more then consider
asking for surplus back.
Under rules laid down by the energy regulator Ofgem in January 2010 you
can ask for the surplus back at any time. If you do then the supplier has to
repay you unless there is a good reason – for example if you have had problems
paying in past winters. In that case the supplier can hang on to the surplus to
make sure you can pay the coming winter’s bills.
Some suppliers will automatically refund any significant excess at the
end of your annual review period – usually the anniversary of when you opened
your account. But others will wait for you to ask.
Ofgem also now makes suppliers adjust the monthly payments so they are as
close as possible to the actual amount needed. In the past suppliers have
overcharged customers to generate a surplus on which they pay no interest. That
should not happen any more – but of course the temptation is there and with
prices heading up again it is easy to justify charging you more. The supplier
also has to tell you “in clear plain and intelligible language” the details of
how the amount of your monthly payment has been calculated. If you still don’t
understand how it has been work out, then ask for a clearer explanation.
If you do not pay by monthly direct debit then you will not have these
problems. Your quarterly bill will be for the amount of gas and electricity you
have used. But remember that if you have not had a meter reading or sent one
through yourself then the bill will be based on an estimate and may be wrong. If
someone calls to read your meter keep the door on a chain until you have seen
their ID and are happy about who they are.
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