Thousands of Brits are being pressured into paying old energy bills, despite strict regulations. Commonly referred to as ‘back-billing‘, the Energy Ombudsman has received more than 3,000 complaints in the year to September 2024 from Brits who have been confronted by energy firms demanding payments.

“Many people get worried,” money-saving guru Martin Lewis said. “They get scared. ‘I’m going to have bailiffs at my door’ – even if it’s not being suggested. So they pay.” However, in many circumstances, there is no need to comply with these hefty charges, as Ofgem clearly states you can’t be charged for energy used more than 12 months ago if:

However, this only applies if you haven’t acted ‘unreasonably’, a term Martin says is poorly defined. Giving evidence to the Commons Energy Committee, the money expert said examples of an ‘unreasonable obstacle’ are usually principle-based rather than example-based, arguing the ‘pendulum needs to shift the other way’.

“You know, has someone who: someone came to read their meter [but] they were not available at the time, so the meter reader went away. They then sent letters to that person. That person says they didn’t receive the letters. Has the company done enough? Has the company not done enough?” Martin asked. “The company will clearly say it’s done enough. The consumer will clearly say it hasn’t done enough. Where is the dividing line? I don’t know.

“All we have is ‘there should not be an unreasonable obstacle’. Now we all know that the definition of reasonableness changes depending on who is looking at it and whose definition of reasonable it is. So I think there is a lack of specificity in the definition of that.”

Currently, Ofgem states that back-billing rules do not apply to those ignoring requests for payments from your supplier, stopping your supplier from billing you accurately (for example blocking access to your meter) or if you’re stealing electricity or gas. “The best way to avoid getting a back bill is to make sure you receive regular, accurate bills from your supplier,” the body added.

Martin went on to slam energy firms who are still attempting to back-bill customers despite there being no ‘unreasonable obstacles’ present. He also scrutinised firms back-billing by taking the money from customers’ accounts if they’re in credit.

“That is not fine. It is not correct,” Martin said. “Credit is still money. You shouldn’t be taking it. But they are using that as their justification for back-billing and we have examples of that.”

The MoneySavingsExpert founder went on to argue that back-billing rules should even be tightened and reduced to six months instead of 12. “We live in a modern digital age where we’re trying to have smart meters installed that give you an instant reading of what is going on in your energy system,” he told the committee. “Why should a firm take over six months to give you a correct bill? I can’t see any reason for that.”

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Despite being against regulation, which has been in place since 2018, it is not recommended to just ignore the bill. Experts over at MSE urge Brits to ‘challenge your energy firm to explain exactly why it’s back-billing you’.

If you’re not happy with the supplier’s response, you can raise a formal complaint here. If this still doesn’t solve the issue, you can escalate your complaint to the free Energy Ombudsman as long as it’s been more than eight weeks since you lodged your formal complaint or received a deadlock letter.

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