I’m an energy expert – five checks to make NOW before big change to bills to avoid paying more

ENERGY bills are about to drop in a matter of days, but there are at least five checks to make now to avoid paying more.

Ben Gallizzi, energy expert at Uswitch, has shared exactly what to look out for before the price cap resets on July 1.

In a week’s time, the government’s Energy Price Guarantee, which limits the typical domestic energy bill to £2,500, will expire.

Instead, the Ofgem cap will come into place which cuts the typical gas and electricity bill at £2,074 a year.

The fall in Ofgem’s price cap will reward households battling the cost of living with a £426 annual saving.

But even though prices are dropping, there are still certain checks to make now.

Ben says: “A fall in the price cap on July 1 doesn’t change the fact that energy bills are still at historic highs, so it remains vital that households keep on top of their usage. 

“Taking regular meter readings and checking the level of your direct debit are as important as ever, and it is also worth keeping a close eye on the energy market as fixed deals return.”

Here’s what to look out for, broken down into detail.

Keep your meter readings up to date

If you don’t have a smart meter, you need to regularly take readings and send them to your supplier.

This keeps your bill accurate and lets your supplier effectively adjust your direct debit to match your usage.

In fact, financial wizz Martin Lewis has already encouraged households paying by direct debit to take a meter reading now to ensure they aren’t overcharged.

He tweeted: “Submitting a reading within a few days of the change (many let you backdate a few days too) reduces the risk of their ‘estimating’ going against you (though there’s always a chance a discrepancy could end up in your favour).”

Customers that don’t take regular meter readings have their bills calculated by an estimated usage and will likely pay more.

So it’s definitely worth figuring out how to take a meter reading to ensure you’re not overcharged.

There’s more information on how to do it for both gas and electric meters in our guide.

Check your monthly direct debit payments reflect your actual use

If not, it’s important to tell your provider as soon as possible.

Ben said: “This ensures you’re not paying too much or too little.

“If you feel you have too much credit in your account after your most recent review, you may want to ask your supplier to return some of the excess.”

The rules for claiming money back if you pay too much and build up credit are different per supplier – but the amount you can get back varies depending on who provides your gas and electricity tariffs too.

For example, British Gas rules state that it will always hold a £75 energy credit on accounts.

The supplier will only refund you if there’s £5 or more left over after it’s put a £75 credit towards your bill.

Customers can request a refund by logging into their online account.

You’ll then need to click on “View payment plan”, scroll down to “Refunds” – and then check if you can claim some cash back.

You can also request a credit refund through the live chat on the British Gas website or by calling 03330 100 0056.

To find out about rules for other suppliers, we’ve written a handy round-up to help.

Direct debits are the cheapest way to pay for your energy.

The average household saves £200 a year compared to being billed.

Track your usage

There are a few tools you can use to monitor your usage online, including the free mobile app Utrack.

This will offer regular insights into your usage and give you some energy-cutting tips if you’re not sure how to lower your bills.

Ben added: “Although bills are generally lower in the summer, the price for energy is still historically high.”

Sign up for alerts on fixed tariff announcements

This way you can have a look at deals as they’re announced and lock them in if you’re interested.

Ben said: “The energy market remains volatile, so suppliers are starting to offer fixed deals that are only available for a short period of time and to a limited number of customers.

“If you want to know when those deals go live, make sure you sign up to alerts so you can get switch-ready.”

For example, So Energy is now offering an energy deal that’s fixed for 12 months, costing £2,047 – £27 less than the average cost of bills from July.

Uswitch announced the new tariff will be available to a limited number of new customers via its website.

The deal is the first that’s on offer to customers that are not already with a supplier.

Existing So Energy customers can sign up to the same tariff directly with the company.

Households that have already signed up to receive alerts for exclusive deals will be first in line for the deal, before it is offered to all Uswitch.com users.

Check energy support schemes or grants

Many energy suppliers have their own grants going to help cash-tight customers.

Some of them are actually open to non-customers, like the British Gas Energy Support fund which offers any applicant up to £1,500 in support.

You’ll still need to meet a list of criteria though, which we covered in our article.

British Gas, E.ON, Octopus and Ovo all offer grants worth hundreds of pounds.

If you don’t know who your supplier is, you can find out using the Ofgem supplier search tool on its website.

You can also just phone up and ask your supplier what help is available – they’ll be able to offer options or point you in the direction of someone else who can help.