UK households warned energy companies are set to 'chase them' for £2,500

Households are being slapped with shocking rises in energy bills - leading to a hefty rise in charity calls. Between January and October 2024, more than 52,000 energy customers called the charity about problems paying their gas or electricity bills.

In 2020, the charity received just 29,000 calls about the issue. On average, the amount chased from energy companies that prompted the phone call to the charity was over £2,500, which is £800 more than during the energy crisis in 2022.

Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: “When you’re faced with numbers that don’t add up, it can at best be confusing and at worst ignite financial anxiety that for some can feel insurmountable. Soaring costs and historic[al] levels of energy debt mean an unexpected or incorrect bill could be the tipping point that pushes a household’s budget from tight to completely unmanageable.

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“Consumers simply can’t afford to pick up the tab when something goes wrong. Ofgem must act to protect consumers by limiting back-billing and raising service standards, so people struggling with billing issues get the help they need.”

A series of billing mistakes led to IT professional Thomas not being charged for his electricity for a year, then hit with a £2,500 bill in error - nearly double what he actually owed. The Energy Ombudsman ruled the bill was a mistake as it was based on a second electricity meter that did not exist at the property.

Thomas said: “When they sent the bill for £2,500 my first reaction was just shock. That sent a shiver down my back. I was almost feeling guilty, like I’d done something wrong. Then that turned to anger when I realised it was completely their mistake.

“There was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing but every time I called them they said they couldn’t do anything until I updated the meter readings. At which point I said it’s impossible because there isn’t a second meter.

“It has taken seven months to get that second non-existent meter removed from the system. Not being able to get past the help desk and get any action, not being listened to. It just ground me down, that weight hanging over you for six months.”