Ever asked for a refund of credit from your energy company ?

[Kingfisher101]

Yes, that's a possibility now Octopus have pis*ed me off. Need to find out how much I save by paying by direct debit.

I think its around £70.00 per year.
I've just looked it up and it around 7-8 %.
So if your annual bill was 2K at 7% it would be £140.00 saved.
I don't trust energy companies. N Power as it was back then Took 1K out of her bank when it was supposed to be £100. She had months worth of hassel getting it back.

 

[Scaleyback]

Yes EDF, and a few others, they will hold onto your money (and the interest) for as long as possible.

I'm with Octopus too, best advice is to keep your payments on track so you don't build up a balance so high, Ive generally found them to be ok.

I have never complained to Octopus before, in fact they are head & shoulders the best energy provider I have used. Makes this episode even more disappointing. I always run a credit balance when approaching winter but I read my meter and submit readings. I know when my credit balance is excessive, it appears Octopus do not ?

 

[Scaleyback]

Yes. British Gas but I already knew I was entitled to get it back. This is what Ofgem say if you need to quote it to them.

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/are-you-owed-money-your-energy-bil

Link says: " Sorry, we cannot find that content. "

 

[PeteXXX]

I'm with Octopus (sold on to them by the co-op). If they consider you are entitled to a refund, there's a button there to click. If no button, you have to ask/beg for it.
I found the easiest way to get my money back is cancel the DD so they take your due bill out of your credit then reinstate a DD for the amount you feel like rather than the amount they suggest.

 

[nellietheelephant]

I change my energy provider every 1-3 years depending on tarrif quotes/if I'm on a fixed etc.
Some years back I realised that for most of the year I was providing the energy company with an interest free loan. It also took around 6 weeks each time I moved to get my account credit back.
Unless you find it helpful to pay a fixed sum by DD, I recommend doing what I've done previously; either pay monthly ( bacs or whatever ) for what you've actually used, or pay a DD for what you've actually used. I found that the tarrif was the same as paying by fixed monthly amount on DD. Oddly, they never seem to offer these options when you search their available tarrifs.
Although savings interest rates have come down a bit recently, there was also an issue for me when they first went up, that I realised I was losing out even more; the few hundred pounds or so they had of mine could be earning good interest.

 

[Scaleyback]

I'm with Octopus (sold on to them by the co-op). If they consider you are entitled to a refund, there's a button there to click. If no button, you have to ask/beg for it.
I found the easiest way to get my money back is cancel the DD so they take your due bill out of your credit then reinstate a DD for the amount you feel like rather than the amount they suggest.

Hmm ! I had ' the button ' which I clicked when I had ample credit. Cannot remember the exact wording but didn't get refund at that point.

 

[fossyant]

Scottish Power. Option is a bit buried but once clicked on you get the refund pretty quickly

 

[nellietheelephant]

Unless you find it suits your financial management, the bottom line is don't pay by monthly fixed amount DD. Pay for what you use, by what ever method. This also saves the hassle of having to claim a refund when the credit seems too high, or getting the credit back when you switch.
They always calculate a monthly amount which, in my experience, is far too much. If you're worried about cashflow, open a savings account and pay into that every month; you'll probably find that covers those big winter bills.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

finally sent a cheque

What is this cheque of which you speak? Is this something from Shakespeare’s time?

 

[PeteXXX]

What is this cheque of which you speak? Is this something from Shakespeare’s time?

Forsooth!

 

[Emanresu]

Link says: " Sorry, we cannot find that content. "

Have changed it as it had cut off the last letter. So 'bill' rather than 'bil'

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/are-you-owed-money-your-energy-bill

 

[Tenkaykev]

I'm with Octopus and have built up a fair amount of credit through having both Solar PV and a home battery. My current balance is a little over £500 as each month there's a surplus over what we consume versus what we export. I haven't asked for a refund as its money that they have paid into the account, and should carry us over the winter months. Hopefully will be energy neutral or very close over the year.

 

[mistyoptic]

Went through the process recently with Octopus. Clicked the button, the day after my bill dropped.

“We can’t consider a claim for refund as we don’t have an up-to-date meter reading”

Me by email “but you’ve just sent me a bill AND I have a smart meter doing half hourly readings”

“Oh yes, sorry. How much would you like refunded?” and then the same 10day to process nonsense.

It didn’t actually take that long, I think it’s just wording left over from the dark ages

 

[Scaleyback]

' mistyoptic ' said " It didn’t actually take that long, I think it’s just wording left over from the dark ages "
I will let you know how long it takes.

 

[deuxfois]

We were several hundred pounds in credit with Good Energy following relatively mild weather and effectively being 'subsidised' by our solar panels.
I phoned the company and as soon as they looked at my account they immediately agreed that a refund was appropriate and arranged a refund and considerable reduction in DD. Top class customer relations, and 'green energy' to boot. Good Energy may not be the cheapest supplier, but they get my loyalty.

Of course I suppose you might argue that it would have been even more satisfactory if they'd pro-actively arranged a refund, rather than waiting for me to complain but, given the cavalier way many energy companies seem to treat their customers, I'm pretty happy.