MILLIONS of energy customers will get a £400 bill discount in their bank account starting from tomorrow, October 1.
How you get the cash will depend on your energy supplier as they are dishing it out in different ways.
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Almost 30 million households are in line for the payment which will help them through the cost of living crisis.
The discount will be automatic – you won’t have to apply.
You’ll get the money in six monthly instalments, starting from October and running until March 2023.
British Gas, EDF Energy, Ovo Energy and Scottish Power said they will pay the money directly into customers’ bank accounts if they pay for their bills by direct debit.
Bulb, E.ON and E.ON Next, Shell Energy, Octopus Energy, So Energy, Utilita and Utility Warehouse have all confirmed they will not pay the discount into customer bank accounts.
Instead, they will deduct the money from customer bills, reducing the amount they pay each month.
Meanwhile, those on credit meters and smart prepayment meters will be paid the £400 discount automatically from October through to March next year.
If you’re on a smart prepayment meter the discount will be applied automatically and if you’re on a traditional prepayment meter vouchers will be sent out to you which you can redeem in the normal way.
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But, it’s up to your energy firm to decide whether they apply the discount as a cash payment or a bill credit.
Here we explain how each energy firm is giving out the rebate and what you need to look out for.
Which energy firms are paying the rebate directly into bank accounts?
British Gas
British Gas, the country’s biggest energy supplier with 10million customers, has revealed how its customers will receive the bill rebate.
Those who pay by direct debit – the vast majority of customers – will have to pay their bills as normal each month.
But they will then receive the £400 discount as direct payments into their bank account, spread across the six-month period.
Those with bills less than the monthly refund will get the money refunded and the remaining amount added to their account.
So that means if your direct debit is £50 in October and November, when the rebate is worth £66, £50 will be refunded to your bank account and the remaining £16 will be applied to your energy account.
EDF
Like British Gas, EDF has also confirmed that its 5.2million customers who pay by monthly direct debit will pay their bill as normal.
They will then receive the discount in cash directly into their bank account after a successful bill payment is made.
Non-direct debit payers will see the energy rebate automatically credited to their energy account in the first week of each month.
Those on smart prepayment meters will receive the discount automatically through a credit on their device.
Scottish Power
Scottish Power customers who pay by direct debit will be expected to pay their bills as normal.
Once the customer’s direct debit payment has been collected, the discount will be applied.
For customers who pay on receipt of a bill will have the discount applied to their energy account each month.
For customers of smart prepayment meters their meter will be updated automatically.
And if you’re on a traditional prepayment meter you’ll be sent a voucher to redeem in a shop. Customers can receive their vouchers via email instead of through the post if they want.
Vouchers will be valid for three months and customers can get hold of a new one if it becomes damaged and can no longer be used.
Ovo Energy
Ovo Energy (and SSE) customers will see the £400 discount instalments credited to their bank account after a successful direct debit payment has gone through.
Those on smart prepayment meters will see the discount instalments credited to their electricity meter.
Customers on smart prepayment meters will receive the discount remotely through a credit on their device.
Which energy firms are NOT paying the rebate directly into bank accounts?
Bulb
Bulb customers will receive the discount automatically and their direct debits will be adjusted accordingly.
Those on smart prepayment meters will have the amount credited to their electricity account.
E.ON and E.ON Next
E.ON has confirmed how its 3.8million customers will be able to get their hands on the £400 energy bill discount.
Those who pay by direct debit and are on a fixed energy tariff will see the rebate amount deducted from their monthly payment amounts.
If a customer’s payments are less than £66/67, the firm will reduce payments to £0 and add the extra as an account credit.
Customers on the standard variable tariff that pay by direct debit will see the rebate added as a credit on to their account each month.
Any excess credit will be carried over to the following month.
Those on smart prepayment meters will also receive the payment as a split credit to their gas and electricity meters.
Shell Energy
Shell Energy‘s 1million customers will see the six discounts deducted from their bills before their direct debit is taken.
Non-direct debit payers will see the discount appear on their bill as an extra payment, so they’ll also owe less than they normally would.
Smart prepayment meter customers will receive the monthly payment direct to their meters as a credit.
Octopus Energy
Octopus Energy customers will get an automatic monthly credit of £66 in October and November and then £67 between December and March.
The credit should automatically reduce customer monthly payments.
If a customer’s direct debit payment is less than £67, the firm will look to apply a payment holiday (reducing certain direct debits to £0) and credit their account with the remaining amount.
For smart prepayment customers, the discount will be added directly onto their meter as a credit.
So Energy
Fixed direct debit customers will get the monthly discount as credit on their So Energy account, typically in the first week of the month.
The firm will also include the discount when they review your monthly direct debit payments. This discount will then be used to set your monthly Direct Debit £66/£67 lower than it otherwise would be.
Those paying by variable direct debit or in receipt of bills will have the discount applied as a credit into their So Energy account.
Smart prepayment meter customers will see the discount applied to their So Energy account, typically in the first week of the month. This credit will then reduce the amount customers will need to top-up.
Utilita
The six payments worth £66-67 will be automatically added as a credit to your account. That means the cash will reduce your overall bill.
Those on smart prepayment meters will be credited automatically.
Those on traditional prepayment meters will get the discount in voucher form.
Utility Warehouse
Like Shell Energy, Utility Warehouse customers on fixed energy tariffs and the standard variable tariff will see the discount come off their bill.
Customer direct debits will be adjusted before each monthly bill to reflect that the customer has received the discount.
Customers on smart prepayment meters will receive the discount remotely through a credit on their device.
If you don’t know how to take a meter reading, we previously explained how to.
What other energy bill help can I get?
On top of the energy bill rebate, there is other help on offer.
Millions of pensioners who usually get the Winter Fuel Allowance will receive £300 on top from November.
Some households are set to get a £150 Warm Home Discount between December and March 2023 as well.
You might also be able to get an energy grant from your supplier.
British Gas is offering one, as well as Bulb Energy, EDF, E.on, Octopus Energy, Ovo Energy and Scottish Power.
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