There is a lot of information on your energy bill, and it can be difficult to understand all the different things listed and what they means for you. Although each energy supplier’s bill may look slightly different, there are certain things which must be included. These are:

• Your name and address
• Your customer reference number or account number
• The billing period the bill is from (this could be monthly/quarterly/6-monthly) and how much energy you have used in this period
• The price you pay for your gas/electricity (your tariff)
• Your meter reading history (this is used to calculate your bill)
• A breakdown of the charges and the amount you need to pay
• The serial numbers of your meter(s)

Ensuring all the information is correct (such as your meter readings, serial numbers etc.) means you will only pay for the units of energy you use. If you are not on a pre-payment meter and you do not submit regular meter readings your energy provider will estimate how much they think you use. This means you may pay more than you need to or they may charge you less and you could be left with a bigger bill once they receive the correct information.

If you believe you are being charged an incorrect amount it is important you check with your energy provider to get this fixed as soon as possible.

Below is an example of an energy bill, breaking down the different sections.