Around £3.09billion of energy credit is currently unclaimed, according to industry regulator Ofgem.
Around £3.09billion of energy credit is currently unclaimed, according to industry regulator Ofgem.(Image: )
Millions of households could get a £255 energy bill refund by checking a two-month rule. Around £3.09billion of energy credit is currently unclaimed, according to industry regulator Ofgem.
As a general rule of thumb you should only think about withdrawing the cash if you have more than two months’ worth of credit. Contact your energy supplier and ask it to return your cash.
BBC and ITV star Martin Lewis previously revealed that energy billpayers could be sitting on hundreds of pounds of unclaimed energy credit. The 52-year-old said that energy firms are reportedly holding over £3bn of customers’ money.
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Direct debit customers accumulate this credit during the summer months when their energy usage is typically lower. Mr Lewis identified November as the period when this credit reaches its maximum level.
He advised that if a billpayer has more than two months’ worth of direct debit payments in credit, they should request the excess amount back from their energy provider.
Mr Lewis said: “Always first check your meter readings are up to date. Then look at whether you’re in energy credit or debt and compare it with the graphs.
“The perfect time to do this is in May, when a normal situation would be to have little energy credit or be a month or so in energy debt – so if you’ve a lot of credit then, it’s too much.
“Alternatively look in November, when you’d expect to be at most two-and-a-half months in energy credit. If you’ve far more, it’s likely too much (though it does depend on how prices are moving).“Yet even if it’s another time of year, it should give you a scale of whether you’re likely to be in credit or debt, but always add a month or so wriggle room – don’t try to make this too overfine a calculation.”
