Energy suppliers are sitting on £3 billion of households’ money with the average home in credit having £210 left with their provider, new research shows.
16 million households (56 percent) have credit with their energy supplier at the end of this winter, despite households usually leaving winter with no credit having used it during the colder winter months.
One in seven consumers (14 percent) have balances surpassing £300, and 5 percent have more than £500 with their energy provider – but only a quarter (28 percent) of consumers plan to ask for it to be refunded, according to research from Uswitch.com.
Two in five households (44 percent) with more credit than this time last year attribute their balance to their direct debit being set too high.
Two fifths of consumers (40 percent) attribute the increase in their credit balance to their efforts to reduce energy usage, while a third (33 percent) said they used the heating less often due to the mild winter.
More than half of households with credit (56 percent) plan to leave the money with their supplier to try to reduce their monthly payments. One in ten (11 percent) will ask their supplier to return their full balance, while 16 percent will ask their supplier to return some of it.
Nearly four million households are in debt to their energy providers amounting to an overall £771 million. On average, consumers in debt owe £194 to their providers.
Average debt per household has decreased slightly from £234 last year but the number of homes in debt has risen by 167,000.
Consumers with Octopus Energy have the highest average credit out of the major energy suppliers at £233, although the supplier also has the highest proportion of customers in debt.
British Gas customers have the highest level of debt at £247, although it has the joint-lowest percentage of consumers in debt.
Customer energy credit and debt balances at major energy suppliers
|
Supplier |
% Credit |
Average credit |
% debt |
Average debt |
Average overall account balance (£) |
|
Octopus Energy (includes customers from Shell) |
63% |
£233.22 |
17% |
£136.78 |
£132.50 |
|
British Gas |
52% |
£216.40 |
11% |
£247.90 |
£101.70 |
|
E.ON Next (includes customers from E.ON) |
60% |
£172.57 |
11% |
£193.48 |
£94.10 |
|
EDF energy |
53% |
£200.38 |
16% |
£224.00 |
£82.80 |
|
OVO Energy (includes customers from SSE) |
65% |
£200.16 |
14% |
£201.59 |
£112.90 |
|
Scottish Power |
59% |
£241.75 |
12% |
£138.88 |
£157.90 |
Source: Uswitch.com as at March 2024
The highest credit balances per UK city
|
Location |
Proportion in energy credit |
Average energy credit |
Proportion in energy debt |
Average energy debt |
|
UK average |
56% |
£210.08 |
14% |
£194.00 |
|
Newcastle |
55% |
£315.58 |
17% |
£162.00 |
|
Southampton |
65% |
£274.16 |
14% |
£186.61 |
|
Manchester |
57% |
£222.91 |
16% |
£162.04 |
|
Edinburgh |
57% |
£222.18 |
13% |
£182.13 |
|
Brighton |
66% |
£213.29 |
6% |
£426.00 |
|
London |
54% |
£209.98 |
17% |
£220.85 |
|
Nottingham |
54% |
£209.91 |
12% |
£190.85 |
|
Cardiff |
58% |
£209.83 |
14% |
£80.25 |
|
Glasgow |
60% |
£208.22 |
12% |
£161.77 |
|
Norwich |
57% |
£203.86 |
12% |
£118.94 |
|
Birmingham |
62% |
£202.66 |
17% |
£208.08 |
|
Liverpool |
55% |
£201.00 |
13% |
£245.55 |
|
Sheffield |
55% |
£194.93 |
8% |
£83.67 |
|
Leeds |
60% |
£192.59 |
12% |
£210.53 |
|
Plymouth |
42% |
£186.90 |
13% |
£257.86 |
|
Bristol |
64% |
£176.64 |
14% |
£142.81 |
Source: Uswitch.com as at March 2024
Will Owen, energy expert at Uswitch.com, said: “Despite the expensive winter for energy bills, more than half of UK households are exiting winter with credit on their accounts.
“This may be because households were spending more on energy than the previous winter, as they were not benefitting from any government bill support this time around.
“In recent years, when bills have been so high and unpredictable, it has been a good idea to keep a lot of credit with your energy supplier.
“However, the fall in prices this spring means that consumers with excessive credit may want to consider reclaiming some of it. If you have a high credit balance, you may want to ask your supplier to check that your direct debit is set at the right level for the amount of energy you use.
“Although falling energy bills is good news, they are still high by historic standards and unfortunately the number of people in debt has risen slightly.
“It remains important that those who do owe money to their suppliers continue to be given the support they need, and we recommend that you contact your provider if you are worried about your energy debt.
“To ensure you are being billed accurately, make sure you submit regular meter readings to your supplier if you do not have a smart meter.”
