Do you know if you are being overcharged due to billing errors?

Domestic Energy customers are not alone in being overcharged due to billing errors.

According to a UK-based comparison site, around 1.3 million householders were overcharged by an average of £79 each by their suppliers. The biggest problem was that the customer meter readings didn’t match the billed amount, and a quarter of all customers said that their bills didn’t add up correctly. Other billing issues include applying incorrect fees and getting tariffs wrong.

Imagine the cost recoveries that can be made for large organisations?

At TEAM, our customers experience the same issues but with multiple sites, numerous bills and several energy providers, the problem is significantly larger. In one case, we helped a London Council recover more than £1.1 million in billing errors. The process of recuperating the £1.1 million had involved looking at 2,000 accounts and 144,000 invoices.

Tim Holman, Head of Operations, describes how these savings were achieved:

Because of problems with the supplier’s new billing system, there was a backlog of billing data. When we received this huge number of invoices, our automatic bill validation identified a large number of billing errors that could have resulted in the council paying significantly more than they should have been for its electricity consumption. Utilising TEAM’s knowledge of the electricity industry and the customer’s portfolio, we were able to challenge these errors and ensure that the council only paid the correct charges.

If an organisation’s consumption doesn’t fall in line with the previous bill. TEAM can identify this discrepancy by looking at the profile of the site.

Sam Grosch, Bureau Services Manager, explains:

In one scenario, the gas supplier was billing based on actual AMR data and then rebilling based on an agent meter read, there was an instant recovery of £16k. This sort of issue is a common query for TEAM.

Some customers have had problems with double billing, this often takes place when suppliers switch between consolidated and manual bills. In other instances, suppliers are not invoicing to the agreed tariff resulting in overcharging for energy consumption.

Other types of billing errors TEAM’s customers often experience include:

  • Still being billed by the supplier after as site has been sold
  • Incorrect meter factors or measurement units
  • Duplicate billing by either a different or the same supplier
  • Incorrect charging of Climate Change Levy (CCL)
  • AMR data that does not match invoice data

How can TEAM’s Outsourced Bill Validation Service help?

TEAM’s Outsourced Bill Validation Service removes the administration time customers need to process and check utility bills. TEAM liaise directly with utility suppliers on behalf of our customers to certify the accuracy of invoices across multiple accounts and sites and ensures recoveries are credited directly.

If you are an NHS Trust or a public sector organisation you can access TEAM’s Energy Bureau service through the Shared Business Services Framework Agreement.

The Energy Bureau service is tailored to meet your organisation’s individual requirements. To find out more about our Utility Bill Validation and Cost Recovery Service or to speak to one of our experts call us on 01908 690018, or contact us below.

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