- 15 million households have £3 billion in energy credit with their suppliers, with homes in credit having around £200 with their supplier on average[1]
- Credit is £315 million lower than last year[2], with suppliers holding less credit to cover a reasonable safety net
- Credit for each household should be around two months of their direct debit, so the level has gone down with the average bill since the energy crisis
- One in ten (11%) households have credit balances over £300 and 4% have more than £500[1], yet only three in ten (31%) plan to ask for some cash to be returned[3]
- Nearly four million households (14%) owe a total of £717 million to their energy providers – £185 on average per home[1]
- Edinburgh is the UK’s energy-credit capital, with the average home storing £224 with their supplier, while Belfast has the least, at only £127[1]
- Uswitch.com is advising consumers to check their credit balance and consider reclaiming any excess amounts.
Energy suppliers are sitting on £3 billion of households’ money[1] – with the average home in credit having nearly £200 with their provider, reveals research by Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service.
At this time of year, consumers should usually exit winter with little to no credit, having used it during the colder months. They should start rebuilding their credit levels during the spring and summer when energy usage is generally lower.
However, 15 million households (54%) have credit with their energy supplier at the end of this winter[1].
Overall, credit is £315 million lower than last year[2], which may be due to falling energy rates and direct debits – meaning that suppliers are holding less money to cover a reasonable safety net.
Households on fixed deals are most likely to be in credit at this time of year, with nearly two thirds (63%) being in the positive, compared with only half (51%) of those on standard variable tariffs[1].
One in ten consumers (11%) have balances over £300, and 4% have more than £500 with their energy provider[1] – but only three in ten (31%) of households plan to ask for it to be refunded[3].
Two in five households (39%) with more credit than this time last year say their balance built up due to their efforts to reduce energy usage[4].
More than half of households with credit (57%) plan to leave the money with their supplier to try to reduce their monthly payments. One in ten (12%) will ask their supplier to return their full balance, while nearly a fifth (19%) will ask their supplier to return some of it[2].
Edinburgh is the UK’s energy-credit capital, with the average home storing £224 with their supplier, while Belfast has the least, at only £127. London has the highest proportion of households in credit, while Leeds has the highest percentage in debt[1].
The highest energy credit balances per UK city
| Location | Average energy credit | Proportion in energy credit |
| UK average | £198 | 54% |
| Edinburgh | £224 | 42% |
| Nottingham | £222 | 57% |
| Manchester | £218 | 52% |
| Southampton | £217 | 52% |
| Birmingham | £216 | 52% |
| Newcastle | £212 | 57% |
| Norwich | £207 | 49% |
| Brighton | £206 | 53% |
| Leeds | £204 | 57% |
| Glasgow | £203 | 51% |
| Liverpool | £197 | 60% |
| London | £189 | 66% |
| Sheffield | £175 | 56% |
| Bristol | £174 | 43% |
| Cardiff | £155 | 54% |
| Plymouth | £130 | 61% |
| Belfast | £127 | 64% |
Source: Uswitch.com
Uswitch.com is advising consumers to check their energy account and consider reclaiming any excess amounts of credit, which is generally any amount above two months’ worth of payments.
Nine in ten consumers (87%) who have requested a refund received it within four weeks of claiming it[5]. Households without a working smart meter should also regularly supply meter readings to their provider to keep their account balance and direct debit level accurate.
Elise Melville, energy expert at Uswitch.com, comments: “More than half of UK households are coming out of the coldest time of year with credit on their accounts.
“During the energy crisis we advised households to leave energy credit with their supplier to protect against rocketing prices.
“However, with the price cap coming down from those highs of the energy crisis, consumers with excessive credit may want to consider reclaiming some of it. If you have a high credit balance, you may want to ask your supplier to check that your direct debit is set at the right level for the amount of energy you use.
“Although falling energy bills is good news, they are still high by historic standards and unfortunately, a significant number of people are in debt to their provider. We recommend that anyone who is worried about their energy bills should contact their supplier, which can offer advice and support.
“To ensure you are being billed accurately, make sure you submit regular meter readings to your supplier if you do not have a smart meter.”
See how to reclaim excess energy credit with our guide to refunds.
For more information
Beverley Noble | Energy PR Manager
beverley.noble@rvu.co.uk
Twitter: @UswitchPR
Notes to editors
Research conducted online by Opinium, 25th to 31st March 2025, among 2,002 UK energy bill-payers, weighted to be nationally representative.
1. Respondents were asked ‘Thinking about your most recent energy bill from your supplier, which of the following best applies to you and your energy account balance?’ 54% said they are in credit, 14% said they are in debt, and 20% said they are even. 54% of 28.4 million households = 15,173,943. 15,173,943 x £197.87 average credit = £3,002,403,381. 14% of 28.4 million = 3,860,913. 3,860,913 x £185.82 average debt = £717,434,941. See table for regional breakdown.
3. Respondents were asked ‘Taking into account the high price of energy, what do you plan to do about your energy credit over the next six months?’ 19% said ‘Ask my supplier to return some of it’, 12% said ‘Ask my supplier to return all of it’, 57% said ‘Leave it with my supplier to try to reduce my monthly payments’, 12% said ‘I don’t know’.
4. Respondents in credit were asked ‘What do you think contributed to you having higher credit this year than last year? Select all that apply’. 39% said ‘I’ve been reducing my energy usage at home’, 38 said ‘My direct debit is high to cover my increased winter energy usage, so I've built up credit’, 34% said ‘I’ve been more energy efficient this year’, 23% said ‘I wasn’t at home as much this winter’.
5. If you have requested credit back from your energy supplier in the last 12 months, how long did they take to get it back to you? 67% said ‘N/A I have not requested credit back from my supplier in the last 12 months’, 3% said ‘N/A - my supplier automatically refunds my credit when it’s high’, 2% said ‘Immediately / on the same day’, 6% said ‘Within 1 week’, 7% said ‘1-2 weeks’, 4% said ‘2-3 weeks’, 2% said ‘3-4 weeks’, 1% said ‘1-2 months’, 1% said ‘2-3 months’, 1% said ‘More than three months’, 0.2% said ‘I’m still waiting - it has been less than a month since I made the request’, 0% said ‘I’m still waiting - it has been more than a month since I made the request’, 7% said ‘I can’t remember’.
About Uswitch
Uswitch is one of the UK’s top comparison websites for home services switching, including energy, broadband and mobiles.
More people go to Uswitch to find their energy, broadband and mobile deals than any other site, and we have saved consumers over £2.7 billion off their bills since we launched in September 2000.
Free mobile app Utrack also helps households manage their home energy usage and make potential savings.
Uswitch is part of RVU, a group of online brands with a mission to empower consumers to make more confident home services, insurance and financial decisions.