Energy billing blunders leave consumers £270 million out of pocket
3.8 million energy consumers have been overcharged by their supplier due to billing errors in the last year, costing a total of £**270 million or** £**72 each**
Over a third (36%) of those overcharged say the wrong tariff or product details had been applied
Half (51%) waited more than a fortnight before the issue was resolved by the supplier, with nearly one in ten (9%) still waiting.
Nearly four million energy consumers were overcharged a total of £270 million or £72 each due to billing mistakes by suppliers in the last year, according to new research from Uswitch.com, the independent price comparison and switching service.
Over a third (36%) of those whose supplier had made a mistake said the wrong tariff or product details had been applied. Other blunders include providers applying incorrect fees (31%), using the wrong meter reading (27%) and setting inaccurate Direct Debit amounts (24%).
Table 1: Breakdown of bill error types
| Energy supplier mistake | Percentage of overcharged customers affected | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| The tariff or product details were wrong | 36% | ||
| An incorrect fee was applied | 31% | ||
| The charge was different to the meter reading I provided | 27% | ||
| The Direct Debit was wrong | 24% | ||
| My bill was muddled up with somebody else’s | 23% | ||
| I was charged twice for the same product | 21% | ||
| The bill didn’t add up correctly | 19% | ||
| A special offer or discount wasn’t applied | 14% |
Source: Uswitch.com survey, May 2016
Not only are billing blunders hitting consumers’ pockets, but also their time. Nearly a fifth (19%) waited between one and two months before the issue was resolved, with more than one in ten (12%) waiting over two months. Worse still, nearly one in ten (9%) consumers who were overcharged as a result of a mistake are yet to receive any money back from their supplier.
Claire Osborne, energy expert at Uswitch.com, says: “Consumers have a right to expect correct bills. It’s unacceptable in this day and age that customers are picking up the cost of suppliers’ mistakes. Households are already trying to cope with the high cost of energy and can’t afford the additional cost of simple blunders.
“Accurate bills are essential if consumers stand any hope of taking control of their energy use and spend. Recent upgrades by some suppliers to billing systems have resulted in teething problems, but today’s figures show there’s still more for the industry to do.
“We urge customers to always check their bills carefully, and speak immediately to their supplier if they think they have been short-changed. Consumers should also always provide up to date meter readings to avoid estimated bills, and check that the figure they provided has been used.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Jason Wakeford
Phone: 0203 872 5612
Email: jason.wakeford@uswitch.com
Twitter: @UswitchPR
Notes to editors
Research was conducted by Opinium between 20th and 24th May 2016, among 2,001 adults in the UK.
When asked ‘Thinking about the last time you were charged more than expected for an energy bill, what was the reason?’ 148 people answered ‘The energy company made a mistake’. This as a percentage of the 2,001 people surveyed = 7.4%. This as a percentage of the adult population (50.91 million) = 3.765 million UK adults. When asked ‘The last time an energy company made a mistake in your bill and therefore overcharged you, how much were you overcharged by compared to what the cost should have been?’ the average amount overcharged was £72 (£71.67). 3,765,383 x £71.67 = £269,852,470.
When asked ‘You said the energy company made a mistake. What sort of mistake did they make?’ 36% answered ‘The tariff or product details were wrong’.
When asked ‘Again, the last time an energy company made a mistake and therefore overcharged you, how long did it take from the date that the mistake took place to the date the money was repaid back to you?’ 29 people answered ‘A fortnight to a month’, 29 answered ‘One to two months’ and 17 answered ‘More than two months’. 75 people out of 148 = 51%. 6 people answered ‘I never got the money back’ and 7 answered ‘I’m still trying to get the issue resolved’. 13/148 = 9%.
See table one in press release. This was a multi-choice question where participants could select more than one answer and therefore percentages will add up to more than 100%.
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