What do I do about a large catch-up energy bill?

A catch-up bill almost always means one thing: the account has been running on estimates and a real reading has finally arrived. The bill is the difference between what you were charged and what you used. That does not automatically make it wrong — but it does mean it is worth checking properly, and there is a limit on how far back a supplier may reach for energy it simply failed to bill.

Safety

Step by step

1. Do not pay or dispute it until you have read it.A catch-up bill is not necessarily an error. Understand what period it covers and which readings it uses before you decide what it is.
2. Find the two readings it spans.Every bill states an opening and closing reading and whether each is actual, estimated or customer-supplied. That marking is the important part.
3. Go and read the meter now.Compare it with the closing reading on the bill. If the meter is lower than the bill claims, the bill is wrong and everything else follows from that.
4. Check whether the readings ran backwards or jumped.A closing reading lower than an earlier one, or a jump far beyond your normal consumption, points to a misread meter, a swapped meter or crossed supplies rather than usage.
5. Check the rates applied to each period.If the catch-up spans a tariff change or a price cap change, the usage should be split across the periods at the correct rate. Suppliers sometimes apply the newest rate to everything.
6. Check the back-billing limit.Ofgem rules prevent suppliers billing domestic customers beyond a set period for energy they failed to charge for, where the customer is not at fault. Look up the current limit and the exceptions on the Ofgem or Citizens Advice site rather than trusting a figure quoted anywhere else.
7. Put your challenge in writing.State the account number, the bill date, the specific readings you dispute, your own dated meter photograph and exactly what you want them to do. Ask for a reissued bill, not a goodwill gesture.
8. Keep paying your normal amount meanwhile.Continue the usual direct debit or make regular payments for ongoing usage. It keeps the account from tipping into arrears while the disputed part is resolved.
9. Ask for a payment plan if the corrected figure is still large.Suppliers are expected to offer affordable arrangements. Say what you can pay each month rather than accepting a figure they propose.
10. Escalate if it stalls.Once the supplier's complaints process has finished, or after the period they are allowed for it, the Energy Ombudsman will look at it free of charge.

Tips

• Submit a reading every month even when you have a smart meter. Almost every catch-up bill traces back to a long run of estimates.
• Photograph the meter with the date visible whenever you disagree with a bill. A photograph settles arguments that months of phone calls will not.
• Ask for the bill to be reissued rather than for a discount. A reissued bill corrects the underlying account; a goodwill credit leaves the wrong figures in place.

Common mistakes

• Stopping all payments while disputing — It converts a billing dispute into arrears, which brings a different and much less forgiving process. Keep paying for current usage.
• Arguing on the phone with no written record — Nothing agreed verbally is easy to prove later, and an ombudsman will want to see the correspondence.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask