Two-week warning for energy customers to ensure they don’t pay too much
MILLIONS of households must take swift action to ensure their energy bills are not overcharged.
Brits have just two weeks left to get a pen ready to take meter readings before Ofgem’s April price cap comes into effect.
An updated meter reading means that your supplier has a more accurate picture of your consumption, so that he can bill you more accurately.
The energy regulator will reduce the price cap from £1,928 to £1,690 per year from April 1.
It means an average household will see their annual dueling bill fall by £238.
However, it is important to note that the price cap is not a limit on the total amount people will pay for their energy.
Instead, it limits the amount customers pay per kilowatt hour or unit of gas and electricity.
The figure is calculated based on what Ofgem thinks an average household will use.
This is calculated on the assumption that an average household uses 2,700 kWh of electricity and 11,500 kWh of gas over a twelve-month period.
Those who use less will pay less, and those who use more will pay more.
So if you send an updated meter reading to your supplier before the April price cap comes into effect, your supplier will have a more accurate picture of your consumption and will bill you accurately.
Customers who don’t do this will be billed based on estimated usage and will likely pay more.
To ensure that you are billed as accurately as possible, you must send your measurement data no later than March 31.
Only those without a smart meter need to do this.
Households with smart meters do not need to send manual meter readings, because these are automatically sent to suppliers.
How do I take a meter reading?
If you do not have a smart meter, your energy supplier will usually regularly request the readings of your gas and electricity meters to determine how much you have to pay.
Customers who do not send regular measurements to their suppliers will have their bills calculated based on estimated consumption and will likely pay more. So it’s always worth knowing how to send the numbers.
After you have taken a measurement, you can submit it in various ways, for example via text message or telephone.
You may also be able to submit it online or through your supplier’s app.
It is best to ask your supplier what your options are.
It’s always worth taking a photo of your meter reading when submitting it to your supplier, just in case you need it as evidence for a future dispute.
The way you take a meter reading depends on the type of meter you have. We have explained how to take a meter reading, depending on your meter type.
Electricity meters
If you have a digital electricity meter, you will only see a row of six numbers: five in black and one in red.
Write down the five black numbers and ignore the red number.
If you have an Economy 7 or 10 tariff, which gives you cheaper electricity at night, you will have two rows of numbers, so write down both values.
If you have a traditional dial meter, you should read the first five dials from left to right and ignore any red numbers.
If the hand is between two numbers, write down the lower numbers and if the hand is between nine and zero, write down the number nine.
If the dial is directly above a number, write down that number and underline it.
If you have underlined a number, check the next number on the right.
If the hand on that clock face is between 9 and 0, decrease the number you underlined by 1.
For example, if you originally wrote 5, change it to 4.
Gas meters
If you have a digital metric meter that reads five digits and then a decimal, you only need to write down the first five digits from left to right.
If you have a digital imperial gauge, your gauge will read four black numbers and two red numbers. Only write down the four black numbers.
If you have a dial gas meter, follow the same steps as those with a dial electricity meter, but ignore underlining numbers.