How to Complain About Your Energy Supplier: UK Guide

Who should receive your complaint?

Complain first to the organisation responsible for the problem. Your electricity supplier handles bills, account balances, tariff terms, payments, meter readings and most smart-meter account issues. A network operator handles the local wires, connections and some supply-quality or power-cut matters. Ofgem says each should publish a formal complaints process on its website or explain it on request.

If you are unsure which company supplies the property, identify it before sending personal or account information. For an incorrect bill, compare the meter serial number, readings, dates, unit rate and standing charge with your records. Our guides to finding your supplier, reading an electricity bill and challenging back billing can help you isolate the issue before you write.

Use an emergency or fault contact rather than waiting for the normal complaint process when there is an immediate safety risk, loss of supply or suspected dangerous meter fault. A formal complaint can follow, but it should not delay urgent action.

Build a small, organised evidence file

Good evidence makes it easier for the supplier and any independent reviewer to see what happened. Keep originals where possible and send copies. Start a simple chronology showing the date, contact channel, person or team, reference number, what was agreed and any promised response date.

For billing or metering disputes, save the relevant bills, tariff confirmation, photographs of the meter and serial number, dated readings, payment records and any move-in or switch readings. If the numbers are in dispute, use the electricity bill calculator to produce a transparent estimate from the same period and tariff, then explain every assumption. A short timeline and the key documents are more useful than a large unsorted attachment bundle.

• Account number, supply address and complaint reference.
• The date you first expressed dissatisfaction and asked the company to put matters right.
• Copies of disputed bills, readings, photographs, emails, letters and payment evidence.
• A short calculation showing the amount you believe is wrong and why.
• The outcome you want, such as a corrected bill, account adjustment, explanation, apology or suitable compensation.

Make the formal complaint clear and specific

Use the contact details in the company's published complaints procedure. Say “I am making a formal complaint” near the beginning, give the account details needed to locate the case and describe the problem in date order. State what has already been tried and what you want the company to do.

Ask for a complaint reference and a written response date. If you complain by phone or webchat, write down the time, adviser and main points, then follow up by email or letter so there is a durable record. Citizens Advice recommends keeping copies; for post, proof of posting helps establish when it was sent.

Keep the tone factual. Separate the amount you dispute from any amount you accept you owe. If disability or another circumstance affects how you communicate, ask for a reasonable adjustment such as large print, Braille, an interpreter or help from an authorised representative.

Worked Great Britain complaint timeline

Suppose you tell your supplier on 28 October that an estimated reading has produced an incorrect bill, ask for a correction and receive complaint reference ABC123. Save that date as day zero. Send the actual reading, a meter photograph, the bill and your calculation, then log every reply under the same reference.

If the supplier sends a final response or deadlock letter before eight weeks and you remain dissatisfied, you can take the dispute to the Energy Ombudsman without waiting for week eight. If there is no resolution or deadlock letter, the Ombudsman route normally opens after eight weeks from when you first raised the complaint.

Do not reset your timeline merely because the case changes team or the supplier gives it a new internal reference. Keep evidence of the first complaint date. If you receive a deadlock letter, Energy Ombudsman says you must normally escalate within 12 months of that letter.

• Day zero: make the complaint, request a reference and save the evidence sent.
• During the eight weeks: answer reasonable evidence requests and keep a dated contact log.
• Deadlock at any point: escalate immediately if you reject the supplier's final position.
• Eight unresolved weeks: register the dispute with Energy Ombudsman even without a deadlock letter.

Should you keep paying while the bill is disputed?

Energy Ombudsman advises against cancelling a Direct Debit or refusing to pay bills while a dispute is investigated because this can create further problems, including payment default issues. Tell the supplier which part you dispute, ask how it will protect the account while the complaint is open and pay the undisputed amount where you can.

If you cannot afford the requested payment, say so straight away and ask the supplier to assess an affordable arrangement. Do not agree to an amount you cannot maintain simply to close the call. Keep records of payments and any hold, repayment plan or collection assurance.

A complaint and an affordability request can run together. If you are vulnerable, struggling to engage or at risk of disconnection, ask the supplier and an independent advice service for urgent support rather than waiting for the ordinary timetable.

Escalating to the Energy Ombudsman in Great Britain

Energy Ombudsman is a free, impartial service for eligible disputes in Great Britain. You can register after a deadlock or final response you do not accept, or after eight unresolved weeks. Provide the complaint reference, first-complaint date, supplier decision and the organised evidence file.

The Ombudsman reviews evidence from both sides against relevant law, regulation and accepted industry practice. Its current process says a decision is generally expected within six weeks after evidence from both parties is received, although complex cases can take longer. Possible remedies include correcting the problem, explaining what happened, apologising or making a financial award.

You do not have to accept the decision. If you accept it, the supplier is bound to carry out the remedy; Energy Ombudsman says proposed remedies should be implemented within 28 days. If you reject it, other routes may remain open, but consider independent advice before starting court action.

Northern Ireland follows a different route

Ofgem and the Great Britain Energy Ombudsman route do not govern domestic electricity complaints in Northern Ireland. Start with the electricity supplier's free complaints procedure, follow its published timetable and give it the evidence and requested outcome.

The Consumer Council for Northern Ireland says you should first log a formal complaint, work with the supplier and wait its normal response time, usually 8–10 days. If you remain unhappy or receive no response, its complaint-handling service can investigate billing, meter, repair, customer-service and switching issues for free.

In certain cases the Utility Regulator can formally determine a dispute after the supplier and Consumer Council route. Do not apply the GB eight-week Ombudsman timetable to a Northern Ireland account; follow the Consumer Council and Utility Regulator instructions for the case.