What is a final bill or statement?

You will see a breakdown of information about your final bill from your previous supplier. We have articles about what you need to do if you are switching to a different supplier or moving to a new property. It's important to understand what information you need to provide in this process so that your journey is as smooth as possible.

This article covers:

A final bill is the last bill a supplier provides in order to settle the account for a property once you switch away from them or the account has been closed for any reason. The final balance will show if you are owed money, or if there is a balance owed to the supplier.

Once the final bill has been settled, the energy account will be closed and there will no longer be a relationship between you and the supplier.

Final bills are produced by the supplier to close the account when a customer is:

Switching to a different supplier;
Moving out of your property;
Transferring to a Supplier of Last Resort (SOLR) because the current supplier has stopped trading.

Suppliers are obligated to issue a final bill for all customers, and this process is ultimately regulated by OFGEM. You will need to pay the outstanding balance if there is a debit after the final bill. On the other hand, suppliers need to return any credit balance to the customer within the given timeframe.

What do I need to do?

Provide Meter Readings

It's important to provide the old supplier with final meter readings and the new supplier with opening meter readings as soon as the switch is completed. Suppliers will normally send customers an email requesting this.

These meter readings will be used to calculate the final bill. If you do not provide an opening meter reading then the final bill will be based on estimates. Therefore, there will be a risk that the final bill is inaccurately calculated.

Settle the Balance

If there is a debit on the final bill, normally that will be taken automatically by direct debit. Other times, you may need to make a payment. Suppliers will notify you of how the payment will need to be made.

If there is credit on the final bill, the supplier will pay that back automatically. Either by direct debit or cheque.

Should you have not received your refund within 2 weeks of getting the final bill, the best thing to do would be to contact your previous supplier as soon as possible through any preferred communication channel.

Switching to a different supplier

The most important thing you need to do is to provide the new supplier with meter readings when the switch is first completed. These meter readings are called opening meter readings.

The final meter readings on final bills are provided by the new supplier. This is because the final meter readings from the previous supplier and the opening meter readings with the new supplier must match. This is to ensure that customers do not pay for the same energy use twice.

The new supplier will then send these meter readings through a third party called Data Collector to check if the meter readings are genuine. From there, Data Collector will provide these readings to the current supplier so that they can use them as final meter readings. Once they receive these, the previous supplier issues a final bill up to the date they supplied energy to the property.

Moving out

To ensure the supplier provides an accurate final bill, the customer needs to provide them with the following information:

Move out date – So that supplier knows up to which date they need to issue final bill for.
Final meter readings on the date of move out – So that supplier knows to which meter readings they need to issue a final bill for.

Depending on the supplier's policies, they can request additional information, such as the address for you new property.

My current supplier has stopped trading

When a supplier stops trading, they need to issue a final bill up to the date when they went out of business.

To ensure the final bill is calculated accurately, you will need to send meter readings from the date the supplier stopped trading, or as close to that as possible.

The time it takes for them to produce the final bill depends on the supplier and how efficiently they work. If they have are a large company it may take longer. The supplier will keep you updated on the progress so its always best to keep an eye on your emails!

After the final bill has been generated, any credit or debit balance in the previous account will be transferred to your energy account with your new supplier. Usually, if there is a large credit on the account, you can contact the suppliers to request a refund or to lower the direct debit. Similarly, if there is a large debit balance, suppliers may increase the direct debit amount.

How can I get help with my final bill?

As it's the supplier that issues a final bill, the best way to get answers to any queries you might have would be to contact them directly. We are happy to support you by providing guidance on how to get in touch with your supplier and what information you will need.