Understanding your energy bills gives you the power to make choices. Here’s how to read your gas & electricity bill and cut your energy costs.
You should get an energy bill every two months if you’re on a typical dual fuel plan, although some electricity or budget plan customers are billed monthly.
If you have paperless billing, you’ll be told when your bill is ready to view online, usually within three days of the bill being issued. If you’re a postal customer you should get your bill within five days of the bill issue date.
It only takes a few minutes to find a cheaper deal and start saving
Your energy bills may look complicated but we’ll help you understand them so you can make better choices about who supplies your energy and how much you use.
There are also other factors added to your bill to make up the total amount you have to pay.
Here we break down each fuel tariff and make your bills simple to understand.
Besides payment and transaction details, your bill will usually show the following information:
An ‘e’ beside your usage, this means your bill is estimated and you should submit an electricity meter reading so you’re only charged for what you’ve actually used. You can do this through your energy supplier.
You’ll notice that much of the wording on your gas bill is the same as your electricity bill. However, there are also some additional terms on your gas bill worth understanding:
If your readings are estimated (e) you should submit a gas meter reading as soon as possible. Either provide your reading to your supplier or submit a reading to Gas Networks Ireland website.
If you are a dual fuel customer, your charges will still be worked out on a per-fuel basis.
You will receive a separate bill for your gas and electricity, so you can clearly see the breakdown of charges, but you will be billed for both at the same time.
You may have a discount applied because you have both gas and electricity with the same supplier. If not, it may be worth trying our free comparison tool to see how much you could save on a dual fuel tariff.
It is a fixed charge for:
A low usage charge may apply where you use two units or less of electricity on average per day in a billing period.
The Public Service Obligation Levy (PSO) is legally required by the Government and approved by the European Commission. It supports the generation of electricity from sustainable, renewable and local sources.
The levy is calculated annually by the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) in line with relevant legislation.
You can find out more about the PSO Levy in our guide.
Your energy bill is worked out by:
VAT is then applied at 13.5% on the total amount. So if your energy bill comes to €100 per month, you will pay €13.50 VAT on top.
If you think your energy bills are too high and you haven’t switched recently, then it’s worth thinking about changing your supplier or energy tariff.
The best ways to reduce your energy bills are to cut down your usage with our top energy saving tips and switch to a discounted deal using our free gas and electricity comparison service. Here’s an example of the money you could save:
Make sure you can switch penalty free by checking for any early cancellation fees.
It only takes a few minutes to find a cheaper deal and start saving