£440 credit with energy supplier …

userxx · 31/05/2023 12:48

Which supplier are you with ?

ferneytorro · 31/05/2023 12:53

EDF gave us the credit back when they did the annual direct debit reset but we are on a smart meter so they know the reading is accurate well as much as it ever is on a smart meter. I didn't ask for it back. It was about £500 I think plus the direct debut was going down so perhaps they have some kind of criteria where they can't keep the credit to offset the bill when the payments are going down.

EggbertHeartsTina · 31/05/2023 12:55

Ours allows us to request a refund of credit balances but also advises keeping a certain amount buffer. Can you reduce your DD so it doesn't get any bigger?

JorisBonson · 31/05/2023 12:57

I've got £350 sitting with Octopus and definitely keeping it there just in case this winter is as bad as last year!

gamerchick · 31/05/2023 12:59

Ours builds up until they calculate the bill and then they take it. I don't think it's a real money owed to you credit is it

AuntieJoyce · 31/05/2023 13:02

I’ve moved house and just gone on to a direct debit. The octopus phone operator offered me a rate based on the previous house owners and I could ring back later and change it if it didn’t work out the right amount. I said that I wanted to just pay what I used and he went okay that’s fine but never offered it to me until I asked.

So I’ll carry on doing what I did before, which is paying for what I’ve used whenever they send me a bill - still by direct debit

NoWordForFluffy · 31/05/2023 13:05

ferneytorro · 31/05/2023 12:53

EDF gave us the credit back when they did the annual direct debit reset but we are on a smart meter so they know the reading is accurate well as much as it ever is on a smart meter. I didn't ask for it back. It was about £500 I think plus the direct debut was going down so perhaps they have some kind of criteria where they can't keep the credit to offset the bill when the payments are going down.

I wish EDF would keep my credit for longer, as they refund me when it goes over £100 at each billing period (quarterly). I transfer it into a savings account for when I need it for energy costs when they do that.

mrsbyers · 31/05/2023 13:10

I’ve got a similar amount with octopus and I’ve just reduced down my dd to £25 a month to use it up

InAFettle · 31/05/2023 13:13

We had nearly £1000 worth British Gas. Requested a good chunk of that back and reduced DD as our DD was higher than any bill we had this year 😤

ferneytorro · 31/05/2023 13:56

NoWordForFluffy · 31/05/2023 13:05

I wish EDF would keep my credit for longer, as they refund me when it goes over £100 at each billing period (quarterly). I transfer it into a savings account for when I need it for energy costs when they do that.

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Oh they must do it differently then for different customers

Aposterhasnoname · 31/05/2023 14:03

gamerchick · 31/05/2023 12:59

Ours builds up until they calculate the bill and then they take it. I don't think it's a real money owed to you credit is it

What? Of course it is. Clues in the name, credit.

We asked for £500 back, left £200 credit and reduced our payments. Some companies will keep hold of it for as long as they can if you don’t ask for it back.

Cupcakequeen75 · 31/05/2023 14:12

We are with Eon and can raise or lower our DD at will plus if we wanted to, we could have our credit back (we don't).

Moved into a newbuild 15-months ago and we had no idea what our usage would be so we let Eon calculate it (£120/m). Then, later in the year the higher prices came along so we upped it manually (£250/m) and built up a really good credit should the bills turn out to be really high. They didn't so in March we reduced it (£100/m) and left it there with about £900 credit.
It will top £1k next month so will probably drop the DD to £50/m and see what happens next winter.
Needless to say we have a SM and also check the meters and summit readings monthly (was a problem with the SM at the beginning so the checking & submitting habit stuck).

Did read on MN the other day that at least one supplier (can't remember who) pays interest on balances up to £1k(?). Not Eon unfortunately.

ForestLilac · 31/05/2023 14:12

Cashycashy · 31/05/2023 11:59

We paid about £235 for energy last month. My DD is £212. The credit is £440.

Should I get some cash back seeing as I am not looking to shave lots off winter bills but nice to have a bit of a buffer? Will they give it to me, I don’t know if there’s a formula… Not desperate for the money but always looking at earning interest!

I supply monthly estimates.

If you’re only supplying estimates I’d supply a proper meter reading first, then you have a better idea of how much you’re in credit by.

gamerchick · 31/05/2023 14:41

Aposterhasnoname · 31/05/2023 14:03

What? Of course it is. Clues in the name, credit.

We asked for £500 back, left £200 credit and reduced our payments. Some companies will keep hold of it for as long as they can if you don’t ask for it back.

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But it doesn't actually get taken until the bills been dished out though. If you take it back, you just end up probably in debit.

You may as well just pay the bill when it comes in in that case and not have a DD at all.

LittleLegsKeepGoing · 31/05/2023 14:41

Depends where you are in your billing cycle. If you're almost at the end of your yearly cycle then definitely get a refund/reduce your direct debit amount.

If you're closer to the start of your billing cycle I really wouldn't because you're expected to build up summer credit to keep your direct debit amount stable over the course of the year. If you ask for a refund you risk being in debit at the end of the cycle or the utility company raising your direct debit amount at the mid-point review.

You should be able to get information about where you are in your billing cycle from your account/bill.

dementedpixie · 31/05/2023 15:00

@gamerchick I supply monthly meter readings to Octopus and a bill is calculated immediately each month so I can see my usage. Currently pay £287 per month and usage the last 2 months was; March £340, April £280. We are only £100 in credit

PurpleFlower1983 · 31/05/2023 15:15

I’m £500 ahead with British Gas and currently paying £244 a month. We used 25% less energy than last year so less than initially projected but they won’t let me reduce my DD online as I won’t be ‘on track’. This has really annoyed me as I used to be able to change it when I wanted.

Mythicalcreatures · 31/05/2023 15:23

I have £2800 credit with EDF, I have a smart metre so know they owe me about£1500, they are being right arses about it, they will only refund after my review so think I'm getting some back end of June, it was May last year but now June. Will be leaving them when I get my money back.

Aposterhasnoname · 31/05/2023 16:05

gamerchick · 31/05/2023 14:41

But it doesn't actually get taken until the bills been dished out though. If you take it back, you just end up probably in debit.

You may as well just pay the bill when it comes in in that case and not have a DD at all.

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Definitely not how it works for me and very many others. Sounds like you pay your bills differently. I paid £240 every month throughout winter, monthly bills were around £180 give or take (accurate as we have a smart meter). Leaving us at the start of summer £700 in credit. We took £500 back and left £200 in credit, and dropped our payments to £190 a month. Most recent bills are around £140 a month, so will add around £50 a month to my credit ready for winter.

dementedpixie · 31/05/2023 19:48

@Aposterhasnoname some companies (edf maybe?) only bill twice a year! They take the direct debit each month and may accept meter readings but they don't do the actual bill for 6 months so the credit mounts up for 6 months and then decreases again when the bill is produced.

Thankfully Octopus does a monthly bill after i submit my readings so I know my monthly usage/cost

ShanghaiDiva · 31/05/2023 19:55

I’m with octopus and request a refund. My monthly payments are £67 (still on my fixed contract) and during the winter had built up about £200 and requested a refund and money was returned.

BlameItOnTheGoose · 31/05/2023 20:02

I did this with EDF. But they first accelerated the bill and took whatever I owed them up to that date out of the funds that they held on account. Then paid me what was left. They also agreed to reduce the amount of my direct debit to avoid big credits building up in the future. They were surprisingly accommodating and efficient.

User18538754 · 31/05/2023 20:07

If you are with British Gas it can look like you have loads of credit but they take the DD each month and then it is taken off the next bill and if you are a quite near a 6 monthly bill, credit will be very high but taken to pay next bill. I have had £1k in credit with them and the it's gone right down when the bill is paid

User18538754 · 31/05/2023 20:09

dementedpixie · 31/05/2023 19:48

@Aposterhasnoname some companies (edf maybe?) only bill twice a year! They take the direct debit each month and may accept meter readings but they don't do the actual bill for 6 months so the credit mounts up for 6 months and then decreases again when the bill is produced.

Thankfully Octopus does a monthly bill after i submit my readings so I know my monthly usage/cost

Yes BG do this, I just wrote a long rambling post then see your much clearer one

Belindabelle · 01/06/2023 11:53

I am with Scottish Power for gas and electric. In credit by £1000. I have just reduced my direct debit down to £50 and will re assess as we head into next winter.