Customers who actively cut back on energy usage over the winter months, when prices were high, could be paying for more fuel than they actually used, claimed Moneysupermarket.com’s head of utilities Paul Schofield.

Most gas suppliers do their best to take frequent meter readings to ensure that customers’ payment levels match their usage, but any delay in reading meters could mean gas companies are relying on estimates based on old usage patterns.

Nevertheless, British Gas was recently commended for its high performance on meter-reading services in a survey from uSwitch.com.

But other customers whose meters have not been read recently can take action, Paul Schofield suggested, reading the meter themselves and submitting their findings to their gas supplier over the phone.

“A minute’s effort could help many of those on estimated readings claw some of this money back,” he added.

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