What to do if you get a back bill

What is a back bill 

Your electricity or gas supplier will ask you to pay a ‘back bill’ when they have not accurately charged you for energy you’ve already used. This might happen if there's been a billing mistake or a problem with your meter. 

Paying a back bill 

You need to pay any accurate bill you’ve been sent by your supplier, including back bills. A set of rules limit the period of time a back bill can cover. 

Check if your supplier has followed the back billing rules 

Our back billing rules mean you do not have to pay for energy you used more than 12 months ago if: 

• you’ve not had an accurate bill for it before 
• you’ve not been told about what you needed to pay through a statement of account before 
• your Direct Debit amount was previously set too low to cover what you needed to pay 

The rules apply to domestic energy consumers and microbusinesses. 

If you have ‘acted unreasonably’ 

You will have to pay for energy used more than 12 months ago if you’ve acted unreasonably, for example by: 

• stopping your supplier from billing you accurately, including by blocking access to your meter 
• ignoring requests for payment from your supplier 
• stealing electricity or gas 

When to contact your supplier 

You should contact your supplier right away if you think they have not followed the back billing rules. They’ll refund any money taken in error. 

You should also contact your supplier if you think you should not have been sent a back bill, or if you will struggle to pay it. 

You can complain about your energy supplier if they continue to ask for payment for a period covered by the back billing rules. 

Help with your energy bills 

You may be able to get extra help if you’re worried about paying your energy bills.