Estimated meter readings lead to £2,200 electricity bill dispute

A consumer disputed an electricity bill of more than £2,200 from their new energy supplier, believing it had been calculated using estimated rather than their actual electricity meter readings.

The dispute

In July 2025 the consumer switched to a new energy supplier for their gas and electricity.

A few months after switching, they received their first electricity bill for more than £2,200 for the period between July and October 2025. They couldn’t believe the bill was accurate as it was for so much, even though they had been with the supplier for a short period.

The consumer therefore contacted their energy supplier on numerous occasions, making more than 20 telephone calls and sending several emails to dispute the charges and request that the electricity account be recalculated using actual meter readings.

Although the supplier acknowledged the complaint, it failed to look into the issues or respond to the issues raised, leaving the consumer frustrated and concerned they were being billed for more electricity than they had used.

The consumer brought their complaint to Energy Ombudsman, seeking an accurate bill based on confirmed meter readings.

Outcome

When the supplier received the complaint from us, they quickly realised that a mistake had been made. The account had been opened to an incorrect meter reading, which had inflated the amount the consumer was asked to pay.

We help suppliers to resolve such complaints by allowing them to make an offer to the consumer to resolve the complaint as an alternative to us carrying out an investigation. Consumers are free to choose whether to accept the offer or to ask us to investigate.

The supplier was quickly able to cancel the original estimated electricity charges and rebilled the account using actual meter readings, reducing the outstanding balance to £93.02.

Given the length of time taken to resolve the complaint, the supplier offered to remove the remaining balance, leaving nothing further for the consumer to pay. In recognition of the inconvenience and customer service failings, it additionally offered a goodwill payment of £100.

The consumer accepted the supplier's proposed resolution, bringing the complaint to a close within a few days of Energy Ombudsman receiving it

Energy Ombudsman comment

As part of our process, we allow suppliers the opportunity to resolve issues like this quickly, without a full investigation. We also use them as a chance to encourage suppliers to reflect on these complaints to enable them to handle complaints more effectively in the future.

If you experience a problem with your energy supplier, you should:

• Contact your supplier as soon as possible.
• Allow them time to resolve the issue and keep records of your communications.
• If the issue remains unresolved after eight weeks, or you receive a deadlock letter, bring your complaint to Energy Ombudsman free of charge.

Find out how we can help you with disputes with energy suppliers.