Energy billing guide
Challenge a catch-up energy bill in Ireland
Received a large bill after estimated or rejected meter readings? Check the calculation, organise your evidence and raise a clear supplier complaint.
Check your dispute first
Answer a few questions to see your options before writing your complaint.
Check your optionsA large electricity or gas bill can arrive when an actual reading replaces earlier estimates. The first question is whether the calculation is right. A second question is whether the supplier handled your readings and earlier warnings properly. Keep those questions separate: poor service does not by itself establish that the energy used should be free.
Start with the last bill you understood and work forward. Identify the meter, the dates covered and the point at which the balance changed. A complaint built around a specific reading or rate is easier to investigate than a request to cancel an unexplained total.
What to do next
- 1Identify the disputed reading, period or rate.
- 2Ask the supplier to reconcile the account in writing.
- 3Use the free CRU route if its complaint outcome remains unsatisfactory.
Check what changed between the bills
Compare opening and closing readings, whether each was actual or estimated, the units charged and the tariff applying to each period. Check that the account and meter identifiers belong to your property. A meter photograph is useful only when its date and meter identity are clear.
If you submitted readings that were not used, list each submission date, the number supplied and any acknowledgement or rejection. Ask which reading the supplier used instead and why. Keep the original messages, including an error screen or automated reply. Do not silently substitute today's reading for a missing historical one.
Ask for an itemised reconciliation
Request a calculation showing how the new bill replaces or adjusts earlier charges. It should be possible to follow the opening balance, usage charges, credits and payments through to the closing balance. Identify any discount or rate change you cannot reconcile and ask which dates it covers.
Make separate requests for a billing correction and for a review of complaint handling. If the bill proves accurate but unaffordable, say that explicitly and ask about a manageable payment arrangement. Keep that discussion going while the accuracy complaint is examined.
Wording you can adapt
I dispute the calculation of bill [reference] for [period]. My reading of [number] was submitted on [date], but the bill appears to use [different reading or estimate]. Please explain the difference and provide a reconciliation of usage, rates, payments and credits. Please also confirm the complaint reference and what will happen to the disputed amount during your review.
Replace the brackets with facts you can support. Attach the relevant bills and a short dated reading list. Avoid sending a folder of unrelated statements when a few clearly labelled documents establish the discrepancy.
Escalation and payment difficulties
Use the supplier's formal complaints process first. If you remain unhappy with its outcome, the CRU offers a free complaints route. Keep the supplier response and send copies of supporting documents. The CRU's linked guidance explains its investigation process and the treatment of disputed bills.
If payment is difficult, contact the supplier promptly about support and an affordable plan. Do not assume that raising a complaint suspends every bill or cancels a direct debit. This guide helps organise a billing query; it cannot establish the correct historical reading or promise a write-off.
Before you write
- Bills before and after the balance changed
- Dated meter readings and meter identifier
- Submission acknowledgements or rejection messages
- Tariff and discount information
- Payment and credit history
- Supplier complaint reference and response