How Is an Estimated Electricity Bill Calculated?

Electricity Estimated Bills: How Are They Calculated and How Can You Avoid Billing Discrepancies?

Estimated electricity bills require careful attention, as the amount you are asked to pay may not reflect your actual electricity consumption during the billing period.

In practice, there are two main ways an estimated electricity bill may be calculated:

1. Estimated Bills Based on Your Own Meter Reading

Through the available meter-reading submission services provided by HEDNO (DEDDIE) or your energy supplier, you may be able to submit your meter reading when this option is available.

In this case, the bill can be based on the consumption calculated from the difference between your latest reading and the previous recorded reading. Depending on your supplier's procedures, a bill may be issued using your submitted reading even if HEDNO has not yet carried out an official meter reading.

This allows you to monitor your electricity consumption more effectively and reduce significant discrepancies between bills.

2. Estimated Bills Based on Projected Consumption

If no actual meter reading is available from HEDNO and you have not submitted your own reading, your bill may be issued based on estimated consumption.

The estimate is calculated by HEDNO's system using information such as the supply connection's historical consumption and consumption during the corresponding period in previous years. Therefore, the amount charged does not necessarily reflect the electricity you actually consumed during that particular month.

Example: If your electricity supply recorded consumption of 200 kWh in May of the previous year, this historical data may be used to estimate consumption for the corresponding period this year. However, if you are away from home or use less electricity this year, your actual consumption may be significantly lower than the estimated amount.

This can result in an estimated bill that is higher than your actual consumption would justify. However, estimates are not arbitrary, and significant discrepancies do not necessarily occur in every case.

How Can You Keep Better Control of Your Electricity Bills?

To reduce discrepancies and manage your expenses more effectively, we recommend the following:

• Check your meter regularly and record the consumption reading.
• Submit your meter reading whenever the relevant service is available through HEDNO or your energy supplier.
• Check the type of bill you receive to determine whether it is based on actual or estimated consumption.
• Compare the meter readings with the charges and check whether the consumption shown on your bill corresponds to your own reading.
• Monitor the meter-reading dates shown on your bill so you know when the next reading is expected.

Submitting your own meter reading does not guarantee that no differences or adjustments will arise on a subsequent bill. The final settlement depends on the readings accepted for billing purposes and the procedures applied by your energy supplier.

A helpful tip from Globy+: Do not check only the amount due. Pay attention to the number of kilowatt-hours (kWh) you are being charged for, too. This can help you identify potential discrepancies earlier, plan your expenses more effectively, and better understand the settlement bill that follows.